More Powerful Than Magic
by brynncutcliffe
Summary: A normal first year at a new school would usually include meeting new people, forming unlikely friendships and learning new things. But Rose Weasley is no ordinary girl, and, conveniently, her first year at Hogwarts will not be an ordinary year.
1. Be Careful What You Wish For

Chapter One

Be Careful What You Wish For

Rose Weasley watched sadly as her family disappeared slowly, smiling and waving as the Hogwarts Express glided away from Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Across from her sat Albus Potter, her cousin. He, too, was starting at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that year, and he looked just as nervous as Rose felt.

"Rose?" Al said in little more than a whisper.

"Yeah?" Rose asked, turning her head reluctantly away from the window.

"What if I'm in Slytherin?"

Rose was silent. She had been worrying the exact same thing. Before she could think of what to say, the compartment door slid open. A small, very pale boy with wavy shoulder length, bleached blond hair was standing in the doorway. There was an air about him that was slightly awkward, but at the same time very graceful.

"Hi," the boy said timidly. He had a weird, squeaky kind of voice. "Sorry, the others kicked me out of our compartment... Can I sit here with you?"

"Sure," Rose said, glancing at Albus. Her cousin was shaking his head, wide eyed. He looked as if he was on the verge of tears.

The boy sat down next to Al, who immediately shifted closer to the window. "My name's Larcan Lovegood," he said. "And if you don't mind me saying, you're Albus Potter and Rose Weasley. My mum's Luna Lovegood, she knew your parents. You're all very famous. I suppose everyone will stare at you during the sorting."

Larcan was definitely a weird boy.

"Al, isn't Lily's middle name Luna?" Rose asked. Al just nodded. He looked to scared to speak. "Is she named after Luna Lovegood?" Rose prodded. Again, Al nodded. Rose gave up. Al could be very shy when he wanted to, so it was unlikely that he would speak at all.

"I want to be in Ravenclaw," Larcan informed them. "My whole family has been, except for my father. He's not magical, at least, not really. What about you? Gryffindor, like the rest?"

"I really want to be in Gryffindor," Rose said, nodding. "But I'll settle for anything other than Slytherin."

"I suppose your parents want you to hate that Malfoy boy?"

"How do you know all of this?" Rose was starting to think that Larcan had some unusual powers.

Larcan shrugged. "My mum knew your parents very well," he said simply.

"Yes, my father wants me to hate him," Rose admitted. "I don't think my mum does, though. I just hope he's not like his father. I wish..." Larcan suddenly tensed up. "What?" asked Rose, confused.

"Nothing," Larcan muttered. "Continue."

"I wish he'd be in Hufflepuff or something. That'd make his father so mad! No Malfoy has ever been in Hufflepuff. He'd probably be disowned. I think it'd be funny, though."

"Do you really want that?" Larcan asked, leaning forward slightly and staring eagerly into Rose's brown eyes.

"Yes," Rose said slowly.

Soon Larcan fell asleep. Al was still sitting rigidly at the edge of his seat, looking terrified and not speaking. All was silent except for the hooting coming from Midgeon (Al's owl) and Fudge (Rose's owl)'s cages. Rose gazed out at the passing scenery, recalling her birthday, two days previously.

_Rose awoke with a start on the 30__th__ of August. She sat up, gently rubbing her eyes, only to see a small figure, sitting at the foot of her bed, grinning. _

"_Happy birthday, Rose!" the young boy squealed_ _with delight._

"_Hullo, Hugo," Rose said groggily, pushing her long, frizzy hair out of her face to reveal a broad grin, slowly stretching from ear to ear. She got out of bed and stood in front of her large mirror, wondering whether she looked any different as an eleven year old. Her grin sagged slightly. Her looked had not changed one bit. She was still the image of her mother, Hermione Granger._

_Hugo laughed. "Don't worry, Rose, you'll always look like mummy!" Rose's little brother grinned evilly. He had the knack of always seeming to know what you were thinking._

_Yesterday, Rose would have quickly retaliated by calling Hugo a red-headed, freckly-faced dweeb, but today she restrained from doing so. It wasn't easy, but she wanted to prove that, though her looks had not changed, her maturity level had gone up with her age._

"_Happy birthday, Rosie!"_

_Rose's parents apparated suddenly into the room, each carrying a parcel. One was very tiny and the other very large._

"_Do you want to open these now, or wait till everyone else gets here?" Ronald Weasley asked._

_Rose desperately wanted to tear the brown paper off of the gifts, but she knew that a mature adult would wait patiently._

"_Later," Rose said with a smile._

_Just then, the doorbell rang. "Already?" asked Rose, frowning._

"_It's 11:30, sweetie, you slept late," Hermione informed her._

"_Oh," Rose replied. She ran to the door and opened it, revealing a man with untidy black hair, round glasses, and a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead._

"_Happy Birthday!" exclaimed Rose's uncle Harry, grinning. He stepped aside and James, Albus and Lily, his children, ran past their father and immediately jumped on top of Rose, shouting 'Happy Birthday!'_

"_Thanks," Rose said, grinning back at her favorite uncle. "Where's Aunt_ _Ginny?"_

"_Mum's trying to get your gift out of the car. It's HUGE!" Lily said excitedly, smiling up at her older cousin._

"_You drove here?" asked Hugo, his freckled face looking confused._

"_Our new house doesn't have a fireplace," James said, making a face._

"_So we have to drive everywhere!_" _Albus added. "It takes so long!"_

"_Oh," said Hugo. "That's weird."_

"_Here comes Ginny now," Harry announced._

_Lily had been exaggerating. The present wasn't that big, it was, however, long and thin. Rose had a sneaking suspicion that she knew what it was._

"_Happy birthday, Rosie!" Ginny said, hugging Rose and handing a very excited Hugo the parcel._

_Soon, everyone had arrived. Rose's muggle grandparents looked very uncomfortable, mostly due to the fact that Arthur Weasley, Ron's father, was berating them with question about the internet. Ron's mum was there as well, looking very embarassed at her husband's behavior, as usual._ _Aunt Fleur and Uncle Bill were there, along with Louis, Dominique, and Victoire, who was sitting in a very small armchair with Teddy Lupin. Uncle Charlie was being told off by Uncle Percy, for who knows what reason, while Uncle Percy's wife, Audrey, and their two girls, molly and Lucy sat quietly in a corner. Uncle George and Aunt Angelina were there as well, along with James' best friend, Fred, and baby Roxanne._

"_Gift opening time, I think," Hermione announced suddenly._

_Uncle Harry eagerly handed Rose the long thin parcel. She tore excitedly at the paper, all thoughts of maturity forgotten, and her suspicions were confirmed. She held in her hands a Thunder Clash 21, the best racing broom in the world._

_Hugo gasped. Ron moaned longingly. Hermione had a very disapproving look on her face._

"_Wow..." was all Rose managed to say._

"_It's tradition to give an eleven year old a broomstick on their birthday," Harry said._

"_Since when?" Ron demanded. "Mum, you never told me..."_

"_Since now," Harry interrupted._

"_Harry, I don't think you're allowed to start a tradition," Hermione said reprovingly. "Especially a foolish one like this. First year aren't even allowed brooms..."_

"_I'm Harry Potter, of course I'm allowed to start a tradition!" said Harry pretending to be offended._

_All of the children laughed._

"_More gifts?" Ron suggested._

_Soon Rose had received the entire 'Nargle Hunter' series from her father, a key to her very own Gringotts vault from Hugo, a hand-knitted jumper and a box of treacle tart from her Weasley grandparents, a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans and a large photo album filled with three-dimensional pictures of fire-breathing dragons_ _from Uncle Charlie, an electric toothbrush from her Granger grandparents, who were dentists, a pocket-sized Hippogriff that Hagrid had sent over by Owl Post, a box of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes merchandise from Uncle George's family, a book called 'How to Become_ _a Prefect in 571 Easy Steps' from Uncle Percy's family, an enchanted razor from Uncle Bill's family, who gave everyone a razor for their birthday, no matter how old they were, and a teddy bear that helps you with your homework from Teddy._

_The adults chatted for a while, and Victoire and Teddy disappeared mysteriously, much to the rumors the children were making up. Soon Hugo started whining that he was hungry and he wanted to eat cake._

_Hermione grinned mysteriously. "I'll go get it."_

_Two minutes later, Rose's mother emerged from the kitchen, most of her body hidden by an enormous chocolate layer cake. "Make a wish," she told Rose, still smiling mysteriously._

_Rose screwed up her eyes, thinking hard. Suddenly, she knew exactly what to wish for. Sucking in as much air as she possibly could, she blew out all eleven candles in one breath._

_All of a sudden, a chocolate brown owl (although that might not have been it's real color, that might just have been the cake) came flying out of the massive cake. Chocolate icing went everywhere, covering every inch of the small sitting room._

_Rose gasped. "I got what I wished for," she whispered dramatically._

_Hermione nodded. "That's the magic of the cake," she explained. "I bewitched it so that it would give you exactly what you had wished for."_

"_Thank you so much, mum!" Rose gave her mother a huge, chocolate-y hug. "I think I'll name him Fudge." Fudge flew over to Rose and landed gently on her shoulder, nibbling affectionately at her ear._

_It had been Rose's best birthday ever._

Rose was brought out of her reverie by a knocking on the compartment door.

"Anything off the trolley, dears?" asked a very elderly witch, sliding open the door. Before Rose could inspect any of the sweets on the trolley very closely, the witch did a double-take. "Good lord!" she exclaimed. "You must be the daughter of miss Hermione Granger?" Rose nodded, and the witch turned to Al. "And you, you can't be mister Harry Potter's son?" Al, too, nodded.

"Dear me," the old woman said, shaking her head. "Age must be meddling with my mind. I thought it was little Harry and Hermione again, back in their first year..."

Al twitched uncomfortably. Rose could tell exactly what he was thinking. Part of her cousin obviously wanted to believe that the witch was insane, but another voice told him that this was what life at Hogwarts would be like for him. He couldn't be expected to be himself, especially with his uncanny resemblance to his father. He would be judged by who his father was, not who he was, and Al didn't like it one bit.

"Excuse me, madam," said a squeaky voice. Rose turned around. When had Larcan woken up? "I'll have some of those."

The elderly witch passed him a handful of blood-flavored licorice in exchange for two silver sickles. Rose was confused. Larcan can't have known that the licorice was blood-flavored, he must have thought that it was cherry or something similar.

Rose and Al each bought a handful of Chocolate Frogs and a couple packets of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum.

"I expect we should change into our robes now," Larcan announced, soon after the candy had all disappeared. Rose nodded.

No sooner had the three kids donned their robes than the Hogwarts Express slowed to a stop.

Students piled out onto the station, the upper-classmen heading directly to the carriages, pulled by Thestrals, a black, scaly horse like thing, only visible to those who had seen death.

"Firs' years, o'er here!" called a gruff voice.

"C'mon, Rose," Al said, grabbing his cousin by the arm and pulling her towards Hagrid. He obviously didn't want to see his brother before the sorting happened. James had been teasing Al all summer about the fact that he might be in Slytherin.

"Firs' years, this way!" Hagrid called again.

Rose and Al hurried over to see Hagrid. A small group of first years was crowded around the huge man, looking terrified at his sheer size.

"Righ'," Hagrid said. "This everyone? Alrigh', follow me!"

The nervous first years followed the half-giant towards a huge, black lake, where a small fleet of boats was waiting for them. "No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid said. "And watch out for the Giant Squid."

A few of the new students exchanged terrified looks. There was a Giant Squid in the lake and they had to cross it? In little, wooden boats, no less!

Rose and Al were followed into their boat by Larcan and a large, pudgy boy who looked much like an overgrown pug.

"Hi," the boy said nervously. "My name's Fugley, but everyone calls me Lee. Well, except for my parents."

Al snorted. Rose elbowed him in the ribs to be silent. "I'm Rose, this is Al, and this is Larcan," Rose said, pointing to each person in turn.

"Yeh'll be getting your firs' sight o' Hogwarts any moment now!" Hagrid announced. He was leading the fleet of boats, who seemed to be rowing themselves, taking up a whole boat to himself.

Everyone 'ooooooed' and 'ahhhhhhed' when the magnificent castle came into view. It was huge, even bigger than Rose had imagined. It's many turrets and towers gave it the look of a medieval castle. Rose half-expected a knight in shining armor to go galloping past on a unicorn, flying it up to the tallest tower to rescue a beautiful princess from a fire-breathing dragon. When she voiced this opinion, Al simply said, "You read too much."

"E'ryone still in their boats?" Hagrid called, turning his massive, shaggy head around. What had once been a sea of tangled brown hair was now a mass of tangled greying hair. "Good. We're almost there now, e'ryone duck."

Rose bowed her head as they sailed into a tunnel which obviously led to the castle. She was getting really nervous. What would happen if she was sorted into Slytherin?

"Alrigh', e'ryone outta their boats and follow me."

The anxious first years followed Hagrid through a massive stone corridor into a giant Entrance Hall. It was bigger than Uncle Harry's house, and that was saying something.

"In yeh go." Hagrid had opened the door to a very large broom cupboard off of the Entrance Hall. "I'll come back fer yeh when we're ready."

Nobody spoke much, everyone was too worried about the sorting. Al was shaking with fear, and Rose could see sweat glistening on her cousin's forehead.

A small, black haired girl had pulled out her wand and was trying to do some kind of spell. She kept muttering 'nervosa awaya' under her breath. As nothing happened, Rose assumed that it was not a real spell, but some incantation the girl had made up herself.

Finally, after ten, very long, very nerve-wracking minutes, Hagrid returned.

"We're ready fer yeh now," he announced. "Could yeh line up fer me? No matter the order, just get yerselves in a line... Tha's righ', now follow me."

And the new first years followed Hagrid through the door of the Great Hall to meet their fate.


	2. Surprise, Surprise

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR. (I forgot to put this on the first chapter, so this goes for Chapter One as well.)

Chapter Two

Surprise, Surprise

A small, wooden, three-legged stool sat in front of a long table. On it was a scruffy, patched hat that had obviously seen better years. Four tables filled with chattering students and empty golden plates were also in the Great Hall. Heads turned as the queue of terrified first years entered the Hall, but the chattering did not cease until the new students had lined up in front of the old hat. Every single eye was on the hat, other than the first years, who were looking around in confusion, wondering why in the world everyone was staring at this hat. Their question was answered when the brim of the hat opened, as if it had a mouth, and began to sing:

_I am the Hogwarts Sorting Hat,_

_In a house I will place you._

_I will look into your mind_

_And sort without further ado._

_But first a bit of history,_

_although you may not want to hear._

_Where Hogwarts came from,_

_And who founded it must first be clear._

_Many, many years ago,_

_Four wizards foundeded our school._

_Salazar, Godric, Rowena and Helga,_

_not one of them a fool._

_Gryffindor is Godric's house,_

_He favored those who were brave._

_Hufflepuff is Helga's,_

_Her students loyal to the grave._

_Slytherin formed by Salazar,_

_Determination and cunning will cut it._

_Ravenclaw by Rowena,_

_She valued intelligence and wit._

_But our founders four are dead and gone,_

_And so it's up to me_

_To place you in the right house_

_To put you where you should be._

The applause began at the center of the High Table_, _with a old witch with her silver hair in a tight bun, and it rippled outward, through the rest of the teachers and finally the students at the four house tables. The old witch stood up; she could only be Professor McGonagall, the headmistress.

"Let the sorting begin," she announced, with a meaningful nod at Hagrid.

"Righ'," Hagrid said. "So I'm gonna call yer name, and yeh'll come forward and sit on the stool. I'll put the hat on yer head and it'll announce what house yeh're in. Then yeh'll go sit at yer house table.

"Cummings, Danielle_."_

A small, ratherfrightened looking girl walked slowly forward, tripping over her new robes before turning to face the rest of the school. She sat down on the three-legged stool and Hagrid placed the old hat on her head, which covered most of her face. There was a second's pausebefore the brim at the base of the hat opened again and roared, "_Gryffindor!"_

The students at the Gryffindor table burst into applause, and the girl scurried off to sit with her new classmates, smiling shyly.

"DelMonty, Parsley," Hagrid said.

"_Slytherin!" _screamed the hat.

"Doyle, Cameron."

"_Ravenclaw!" _

"Dumfickle, Doris."

"_Slytherin!"_

"Dursley, Fugley." Hagrid frowned as he read this name, as if he was concentrating very hard on something. Rose, too, thought she recognized the name, but where had she heard it?

"_Gryffindor!"_

Rose didn't pay much attention as Kirk Lieff and Alicia Longbottom were sorted into Ravenclaw and Larcan Lovegood was sorted (dang it) into Gryffindor. When "Malfoy, Scorpius" was announced, however, she glanced up in interest. The Malfoy boy sat on the three-legged stool for a long time. People began to whisper as Scorpius shook with nerves, listening to whatever the hat was saying to him. Finally, after at least five minutes, the brim of the hat opened again.

"_Hufflepuff!"_ it screamed.

Rose's jaw dropped. She looked over at her cousin, who wore a similar expression of wonder.

Scorpius looked as if he was about to cry. He set the hat down on the stool and scurried off towards the Hufflepuff table.

"McDonald, Tia."

"_Slytherin!" _

Gregory Oyles and Royce Phlegm were also sent to Slytherin, before Hagrid called, "Potter, Albus."

Again, a hushed whisper fell over the Hall. People were pointing as a very nervous, very self-conscious Al walked hesitantly forward. _"He looks just like Harry Potter!" _came a loud whisper from the Ravenclaw table.Al glanced back at Rose, fear etched across his features, echoing in his startling green eyes. Rose nodded encouragingly.

The hat had barely touched his head when it screamed,_ "Gryffindor!"_

Al's shoulders fell, all tension released.He let out a deep, happy sigh, as he jumped up and walked proudly over to the Gryffindor table, to tumultuous applause. James actually stood up on his seat and wolf-whistledloudly.

Dane Schin, Godric Smallstick, Sarah Spinnet, Holly Suns...

Lucinda Vigglebomm, Sue Vigor... Rose was the only first year left, the last student to be sorted...

"Weasley, Rose."

Hagrid winked at Rose as she sat down on the stool and crammed the old hat onto her head, squeezing her eyes shut.

"_Anything but Slytherin,"_ she thoughtwith all her might.

"_Hmmmm...."_ said a voice, which must have been the Sorting Hat._ "Daughter of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, niece of Harry Potter and Ginevra Weasley, cousin of Albus Potter, James Potter and Lily Potter, sister of young Hugo Weasley, I am correct? Yes, I thought so. Well then, there's only one place I really can put you, isn't there?_

"_Gryffindor!"_

Rose grinned as she handed Hagrid the old hat.She half ran over to the Gryffindor table in her elation. James thumped her on the back as the rest of the Gryffindors applauded loudly. Albus was smiling happily at her, and her cousin Fred was hooting in appreciation. Franklin Longbottom, James' best friend, was not clapping like the rest, but patting his growling stomach, complaining that he was starving. Across the table from Frank, Fugley Dursley, the boy who's name had sounded so familiar to Rose, was doing the same.

Professor McGonagall stood up and spread out her arms in welcome. "Let the feast begin!" she announced.

The golden plates filled magically with all sorts of wonderful foods. Fugley actually fell backwards out of his seat when the feast appeared. Rose helped herself to a huge mound of mashed potatoes, half a dozen chicken wings and a bowl of salad. No sooner had she finished than the food all disappeared and was replaced by puddings, every kind Rose had ever seen and new, unknown desserts. Frank's face, which had already been covered in sauce from the chicken wings, was now covered in chocolate sauce as well. Rose hurriedly wiped her own face with her napkin to ensure that she was not embarrassing herself in such a way.

"Here, Rosie," James said, passing Rose a bowl of some unknown blue substance. "Try this, it's really good."

Rose hesitated. She was unsure of whether or not she should trust her outgoing cousin with blue food. However, Frank nodded, and Rose figured that Frank could be trusted in the area of food. She was just reaching for the bowl when a silvery head burst through the table, much to the shock of the first years. Fugley fell backwards again, spilling chocolate cake all over himself.

"Hello!" said Nearly Headless Nick, whom Rose had heard much about from her family. "Welcome to Hogwarts! So sorry, I was caught up in a row with Peeves and the Fat Friar, I missed the sorting. Who have we got this year?"

James pointed out Danielle Cummings, Mariah Finley, Godric Smallstick, Rose, Al, Larcan, Martie Finnigan, Sarah Spinnet and Fugley between mouthfuls. Each of the new students waved timidly at the Gryffindor ghost in turn.

Rose had just barely gotten over the shock of seeing one ghost when about fifty more floated lazily through the wall opposite. One particularly small ghost headed towards the Gryffindor table.

"Oh, no," Nick said. "It's Creevey, better run..."

"You can't run, you're a ghost," Fred reminded him.

Nick frowned. "Thank you for the reality call, I had forgotten I was a ghost!" he said sarcastically. "It's an _expression_. Have you ever laughed so hard your head actually fell off?"

"No," James laughed. "But I'm sure _you _could!"

"Yes, yes, very funny, quite hilarious," Nick muttered as he floated away.

"Who's Creevey?" Rose whispered to James.

"We call him Creepy Creevey," James whispered back. "He died in the Battle of Hogwarts. He's really, really annoying. Avoid him if you can."

"Hia, James!" Creepy Creevey exclaimed floating over and landing on the table in front of Rose.

"Hullo, Creevey," James muttered.

"Hey! Are you James' brother?" Creepy Creevey asked, rouding on Albus.

Al nodded nervously. Creepy Creevey took out a silvery ghost-camera and snapped a picture of Albus. Al blinked, taken aback. "Why'd you take my picture?" he demanded.

"He takes everybody's picture," James said, rolling his eyes.

"You look exactly like your dad!" Creevey informed Albus, as if he didn't already know. "I knew your dad, you know. We were really good friends. He taught me how to play Quidditch!"

"I know for a fact that Creepy over there annoyed the heck out of dad," James whispered into Rose's ear.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," James said quickly. "Go bother someone else, Creep."

Creepy Creevey looked hurt. "Oh, okay..." He drifted sadly towards the other end of the Gryffindor table.

"There was no need to be so rude!" Rose hissed at James, who shrugged.

The food disappeared yet again, leaving the golden plates sparkling, as good as new. Professor McGonagall stood up again.

"Welcome," she said, "to a new year at Hogwarts. First years should be advised that the Forest at the edge of the Grounds is off limits to all students. Hogsmeade village is also out-of-bounds for students below third year. Mr Filch, our care-taker, has asked me to remind you that a number of things are forbidden in this castle, although it might take me a week to list them all. If you would like to view the list, it is posted in Mr Filch's office. And now it is time to head off to bed, as you will need to be well rested for your lessons tomorrow morning. Prefects will please show our first years the way to their dormitories. Thank you, that is all. A good night to you."

"First years, over here!" called a skinny blond fifth year girl. The first years gathered around her, eager to see where they would be living for the rest of the year.

"My name is Cydney Meyer, and I am a Gryffindor prefect," said the girl. "If you ever need anything, don't be shy, you may ask me whatever you like. Now, please follow me, I will show you the way to our dormitory. Oh, and watch out for the stair cases, they tend to move around."

Rose and the rest of the first years followed Cydney through a number of secret passages, corridors, up spiraling staircases, one of which had a trick stair that Albus got his leg stuck in. It had taken a good five minutes for Cydney to pull him out.

Rose thought desperately that she'd never remember the way to the dormitory, let alone which stairs to jump so as not to get stuck in them.

"Don't worry," Cydney said, as if reading Rose's mind. "You may think that you'll never be able to find your way around, but after a little while you'll figure it out."

Finally they stopped in front of a portrait of a very fat lady wearing a pink dress and many pearls. "Password?" she asked.

Mariah Finley gasped. "It moved!" she whispered loudly.

Rose laughed quietly to herself. Mariah must be a muggle-born, not knowing that portraits moved!

"Jubilee," Cydney said.

The portrait swung forward, revealing a small round hole. "Go ahead, climb in," Cydney said, gesturing to the hole.

Rose scrambled into the common room after Albus, only to see a very cozy looking room, filled with big chintz armchairs, all facing a merrily crackling fire.

"This is the Gryffindor Common Room," Cydney announced. "The girls dormitory is upstairs and to your right, the boys is upstairs and to the left. You will find that all your things have been taken up already."

As soon as Rose sat down on her new four-poster bed, she realized that she was exhausted. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow, still fully clothed.


	3. Pure Blood and Prejudice

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Three

Pure-Blood and Prejudice

Rose's first week at Hogwarts went by in a blur. She got lost numerous times, got picked on by Peeves and forgot to jump the trick stair. Her lessons were difficult, but they were also quite interesting, so Rose didn't mind them.

One particularly nice day she managed to get down to her first Herbology lesson without getting lost even once.

"Hello, class," said Professor Longbottom jovially. "My name is Professor Longbottom and I will be your Herbology teacher for the year."

A couple students muttered, "Hullo, Professor," although most said nothing at all.

Professor Longbottom began the class by taking the register. He grinned at Rose when he read off her name. Rose blushed. How embarrassing was it for the Herbology teacher to be an old family friend? And Professor Longbottom wasn't the only teacher that Rose's parents knew; they had also gone to school with Madam Bell, the Quidditch teacher, and Professor Brown, the Divination teacher. Professor Hagrid, of course, was also a family friend.

"Now, today's lesson will be quite simple," Professor Longbottom told the class. "All I want you to do is to take these Fergula," he indicated a group of green weed-like plants in cracked brown pots, "and put them in these pots. They need to be repotted every few weeks, other wise they can't reproduce. I would like you to work in pairs, please."

Rose turned immediately to Al, but Fugley Dursley has already teamed up with him. All the other Gryffindors had already found partners. Frustrated, Rose examined the group of Hufflepuffs across the table. They, too, had all found partners. All except for one...

"Um, hi?" said a pale, blond boy, who looked remarkably like his father, but more dignified, more handsome, somehow. It was Scorpius Malfoy.

"Hi," Rose muttered, dropping her gaze. She had been staring into the boys perfect grey eyes.

"My name's Scorpius," he said. "Although you've probably already heard about me from your parents." Rose detected a bitterness in Scorpius' voice that she could not understand.

"Um, yeah, a bit," Rose admitted, blushing. "So I guess you know who I am, then."

"Yeah," Scorpius said, blushing as well. "My dad told me that..."

"That what?" Rose demanded when Scorpius broke off, looking embarrassed.

"Nothing."

"Tell me," Rose pleaded.

"It's nothing, really," Scorpius said hurriedly. "He just said some things about your parents."

"Like..."

"You're a half-blood." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

"And...?"

"Nothing, it's nothing."

Professor Longbottom interrupted their conversation just then by appearing suddenly behind Rose's shoulder, checking to see how they were getting along with the repotting. He nodded and walked away, muttering something to himself.

"Do you have a problem with the fact that I'm half-blood?" Rose whispered furiously.

"_I _don't..."

"But your father does," Rose stated.

"He hates your family, the whole lot of them," Scorpius explained in a hurried whisper. "He says that you and your brother are as good as Mudbl- sorry, muggle-borns, for all he cares, your father is a no-good blood-traitor or something of the sort. And your uncle... let's just say there is an unspoken hatred between he and my father."

"What does your mother think?" Rose asked tentatively.

"My mother!" Scorpius laughed bitterly. "Her whole family were Death Eaters, or Death Eater wannabes. She hates your family, because they defeated You-Know-Who and all that. She's even worse than my father, if you ask me."

Rose had one more question, a question that was burning inside of her, a question that she needed to know the answer to immediately. "And..." Rose hesitated, fearing the answer. "What about you? How do you feel?"

Scorpius paused, causing Rose to regret ever having entered into conversation with this boy. She had a pretty good idea that she knew what his answer was going to be.

"I think it's all a load of rubbish, that's what I think," Scorpius said, laughing bitterly yet again. "Pure-blood, half-blood, muggle-born... Who cares, really? It's just discrimination. Did you know that the muggles in America enslaved African muggles just because they had dark skin? It's crazy."

Rose felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. This boy could not be Scorpius Malfoy, son of Draco Malfoy, and grandson of the Death Eater Lucius Malfoy. No, this had to be a different Scorpius, from another dimension.

"What about you?" Scorpius asked nervously. "Do you hate me because I'm a Malfoy?"

"I thought I would," Rose admitted. "At first. But then I met you, and I talked to you, and you're not that bad, really."

Scorpius shook his head. "When my parents find out I'm in Hufflepuff, they'll skin me alive. They'll probably make me come home."

"Don't tell them, then," Rose suggested immediately. She didn't know why, but she was drawn to Scorpius in a way she had never been to any other person. She did not want him to leave Hogwarts.

Scorpius laughed bitterly for a third time. Rose was beginning to wonder if he knew how to really laugh. "So much for loyalty and all that other stuff Hufflepuffs are supposed to be. Lying to my own parents, ashamed of who I am, fraternizing with the 'enemy', as father would probably say."

"That doesn't matter," Rose said firmly. "None of it matters. You're a good person, Scorpius, and you should stay that way. Don't let your father get it into your head that you're a disgrace to the family name just because you're not in Slytherin! Slytherin's for idiots, anyway."

"Prejudiced, much?" Scorpius snorted.

"Just a bit," Rose laughed.

"Friends?" Scorpius asked, sticking out a gloved, soil covered hand.

"Friends," Rose agreed, taking Scorpius' hand in her own and shaking it.

"Our time is almost up for the day," Professor Longbottom announced. "Please place your repotted Fergula in this crate, here, and then you may leave."

As soon as all the Fergula were safely away in the crate, Rose turned to say goodbye to Scorpius. He was waiting at the door of the greenhouse. "D'you wanna walk back up to the castle with me?" he asked timidly.

"Sure," Rose replied, grinning.

The unlikely pair walked side by side towards the castle, chatting pointlessly all the way, with Albus following close behind them, glaring angrily at Scorpius. It seemed as if Rose's cousin had inherited his father's loathing of the Malfoy family.

***

"Why were you with the Malfoy boy?" Al demanded as soon as the first year Gryffindors returned to the common room after Herbology.

"There's no need to look so hateful," Rose said angrily.

"Why were you with him?!"

"Just because his father was an idiot doesn't mean Scorpius is, too!"

Larcan cut in before Albus could reply. "What are you two yelling about?"

"Nothing, Larcan, go away," Rose muttered, annoyed.

"I think that you're being prejudiced," Larcan informed Al. "You don't even know Scorpius Malfoy and you already hate him."

"Wait-" Al said. "Why did you ask what we were yelling about if you already knew?"

"I didn't know," Larcan said immediately.

"You just said- 'You're being prejudiced, you don't even know Malfoy and you hate him already', or whatever it was!"

"I didn't say that."

"Don't play dumb, Lovegood!" Al cried, losing his temper completely.

A hush had fallen over the common room. The other Gryffindors had looked up from their books and conversations, all staring intently at Rose, Al and Larcan. Rose, quite angry at both Al and Larcan, though for different reasons, stormed off to her dormitory, leaving the whole of Gryffindor house gaping after her.


	4. Quidditch Tryouts

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Four

Quidditch Try-outs

"Rose!" James called, waving frantically at his cousin. "Rose! Over here!"

Rose had just set out to visit Hagrid, and James was standing just outside the Entrance Hall, waiting for her.

"Hey, James," Rose said, greeting him with a wave. "I was just on my way to see Hagrid. You could come, if you liked."

"No, I can't, Quidditch try-outs are today!" James was grinning broadly. Rose suddenly realized that James was holding a Thunder Clash 21, the fastest racing broom in the world. Rose had a Thunder Clash as well; she had received it for her eleventh birthday, two days previously. It was at home, however, as first years aren't allowed their own broomsticks. "Wanna wish me luck?"

"Good luck," Rose said, laughing. "What position are you trying out for?"

"Seeker," James stated, grinning even more broadly. "You should come watch, Rosie, it's gonna be really cool!"

"Well..." Rose hesitated. She loved Quidditch, it was her favorite sport in the whole world. She had, however, promised Hagrid that she would come visit. "Maybe after Hagrid's, okay? He might want to come watch as well."

"Alright," James said. "Well, I'd better fly. Ha, ha, ha, get it? Fly?"

"Yeah, yeah," Rose said, trying to sound sarcastic, but giggling all the same. "I get it."

Hagrid, it turned out, did want to watch the try-outs. "If James can fly half as well as his father could, he'll be on the team fer sure!"

So Hagrid and Rose took their seats in the stands and settled down to watch.

Robyn Cullen, a pretty fifth year girl, was the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. She was conducting the try-outs. "We'll start with a warm-up," Robyn called to all the prospective players. "Every one mount their brooms, I'd like to see you do five laps of the pitch. Speed is not an issue, just get yourself around that pitch five times."

James was among the first finished. Whether or not that was owing to the quality of his broomstick, however, Rose was unsure.

"Good, thank you," Robyn said. "Now, I want to start with Keepers. I'll try to score on each of you five times, and whoever saves the most balls will be our new Keeper."

Robyn was an excellent chaser. Her technique was incredible. Two of the prospective Keepers failed to save any of Robyn's shots, and most only saved one or two. Mickie Dewent, who had been Gryffindor Keeper for the past couple of years, secured his spot again by saving all five of Robyn's shots.

"Great," Robyn said, slightly flushed in the face. "Now we need two new Chasers. I'm the third, obviously. You'll try to score on Mickie, and, again, whoever scores the most will become our Chasers."

The Chasers had a hard time. Mickie was just a very good Keeper, there was no denying. In the end, Cydney Meyer, the prefect, returned to the team, along with Violet McEwen, a tiny, red-headed second year girl.

Next, the Beaters tried-out. Hambley McFlaherty and Fred Weasley became the new Gryffindor Beaters. Finally, it was time to pick a Seeker.

"This is it," Hagrid whispered in Rose's ear. "Whadda ya think? D'you reckon James'll make it?"

"I dunno," Rose whispered back. "He's a good flier, but I've never seen him play Seeker before."

The Seekers' task was simple. Whoever caught the Golden Snitch first made the team.

The crowd had diminished slightly after the rejected Chasers, Keepers and Beaters had left, but it seemed as if the majority of the Gryffindors wanted to play Seeker. Even Larcan Lovegood had turned up to try out, even though first years rarely ever made the team.

It was a very long time before the Snitch made an appearance. It was Drew Donald, a rather large fourth year boy, who spotted it. Unluckily for Drew, he was riding a Shooting Star, which flew barely faster than walking. Before he could catch it, and before any of the others realized what had happened, the Snitch disappeared yet again.

James was circling high above the rest, staring around for the walnut-sized golden ball. He had a determined look in his eye. He definitely looked the part of a Seeker; he was small and slim like his father had been, and his broomstick looked immaculate, outstripping any of the other brooms on the pitch by a mile.

Suddenly, James plunged head first towards the ground, speeding faster than an airplane, and almost knocking poor Drew off of his broom. He had seen the Snitch! Most of the others were too shocked to follow James, but a pale, blond haired boy raced after him, very close on his heels, leaning as far forward as possible, urging his Nimbus 2000 onwards. It was Larcan.

Rose and Hagrid were on their feet, screaming James on, but Larcan was gaining on him, it was going to be very close. Larcan drew level with James, reaching out his hand... But James was quicker. He snatched the Golden Snitch, swiping Larcan's finger-tips out of the way. He raised his hand high in the air in triumph, screaming, "I've got the Snitch!"

Robyn requested that the new team stay behind for a short meeting before going to dinner. Rose and Hagrid waited for James outside of the changing rooms.

Ten minutes later, James emerged, a broad grin stretching across his face.

"Congratulations," Rose told him, smiling back at her cousin.

Hagrid wiped a shining tear out of his crinkled black eye. "Yeh were great out there, James," he said. "Just like yer father. Reminds me o' his firs' Quidditch game, an' he caught the Snitch in his mouth. We all though' he was gonna be sick! An' then his broomstick goin' crazy an' all..." Hagrid burst into tears.

"Hagrid! Why are you crying?" Rose asked, patting the Game Keeper's large back.

"I'm... so... _happy..._ fer yeh!" Hagrid spluttered.

"Could you be happy a little less wetly?" James asked, laughing. "C'mon, let's go get dinner. You coming Hagrid? Think you can handle the happiness of food?"

"I'm comin', I'm comin'," Hagrid said, wiping his face dry with his dustbin lid sized hands.

For the next week, James could talk about nothing other than Quidditch. He became absolutely unbearable. Rose took to avoiding him when she saw him in corridors, so as not to be bombarded by another rant about how great Quidditch was. Even Fred Weasley, James' cousin and best friend, was getting annoyed.

"Can James talk about anything other than Quidditch?" he asked Rose one day in the common room. "I mean, I made the team, too, but am I going on about it and bragging to every person I see? No. And he doesn't need to, either."

Rose nodded fervently. Hopefully after the first Quidditch match of the season, which was the first Saturday of October, James would shut up. On the other hand, perhaps a Gryffindor victory would make him even more unbearable. Rose was torn. She wanted Gryffindor to win, but would it spawn a new level of Quidditch talk on James' part?

Franklin Longbottom, another friend of James', and Professor Longbottom's son, plopped down in an armchair next to where Fred was sitting, watching Rose and Al, who were playing a very exciting game of wizard's chess. "James is getting on my nerves," he grumbled.

"You too?" Fred asked, rolling his eyes.

"Knight to E five," Albus said.

Frank nodded. "'I can't wait for the game! I hope we win! We probably will, I think I'm a much better Seeker than Eliana Miller... Hufflepuff's Chasers are decent, but I think ours are better... Really strong team this year, don't you think, Frank? I love Quidditch... Quidditch is awesome, Quidditch, Quidditch, Quidditch!" he said, mimicking James' voice.

Fred rolled over in his chair, laughing, as Rose's queen smashed Al's knights head off.

"Did I hear someone say Quidditch?" James asked, grinning as he sat down next to Rose. "I can't wait till the first match of the season, can you?"

"Oh, no," Frank said sarcastically.

"We're jumping for joy," Fred said, rolling his eyes.

"Seriously?" James asked, looking schocked. "You're not psyched, Fred? Our first game as a part of the Gryffindor team?"

"Yeah, James, I am excited, and nervous too, actually," Fred replied. "But could you seriously shut up about it for once? It's all you talk about and it's getting really, really annoying."

"Oh," James said, looking down at his feet dismally.

"Bishop to A six," Rose instructed.

"Castle to A six," Al said, grinning as his castle pulled Rose's bishop to the side of the chess board.

Rose grinned too. "Knight to B three."

Al swore loudly.

"Checkmate," Rose announced triumphantly.

"Do you think I talk about Quidditch too much, Rose?" James asked.

Rose hesitated before nodding, not wanting to hurt James' feelings too much. She decided, however, that the truth was always better than a lie, even if the truth hurt sometimes.

"Al?" James asked, turning to his brother.

Albus sighed. "Yes, James, and as Fred said a minute ago, it's really annoying."

"Fine, then." James stalked angrily off up the stairs and to his dormitory.

Fred rolled his eyes again. "He has got to get over himself. And soon. Preferably before we all go crazy."

Franklin, Rose and Al all laughed, silently agreeing with Fred. If James didn't shut up about Quidditch and how great he was at it soon, they might just lose their minds.


	5. An Odd Couple

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Five

An Odd Couple

"Now, today I'm going to teach you a new spell called 'Expelliarmous'," said Professor Hassari. "It's a little advanced for first years, but I think that some of you will be able to pull it off." He winked at Rose. "Now, I'd like you to find a partner and try to disarm them. Again, the spell is 'Expelliarmous'."

"Rose!" Scorpius mouthed, waving at Rose frantically.

"On three then," Professor Hassari called out. "One, two, three!"

Cries of 'Expelliarmous!' rang out all over the room. For the most part, nothing happened, but Scorpius's wand twitched a little bit.

"Again!" Professor Hassari said. "On your on time this time!"

"Expelliarmous!" Rose cried before Scorpius could say anything.

Scorpius's wand flew out of his hand and sailed across the room, landing on the desk in front of Professor Hassari.

"Oh, very good, Miss Weasley!" he cried delightedly. "I knew you could do it! Ten points to Gryffindor!"

Rose grinned as Scorpius hurried over to retrieve his wand.

"Here, you can try to disarm me this time," Rose said. "I won't say anything."

Scorpius nodded, screwed up his face in concentration and cried, "Expelliarmous!"

Rose's wand twitched.

"You almost had it!" Rose yelled, trying to be heard above all the cries of 'Expelliarmous!' "Try again!"

Scorpius nodded and screwed up his face again. "Expelliarmous!"

Again, Rose's wand twitched. "Almost!" Rose said encouragingly. "Try not to flourish your wand as much this time."

The third time, Scorpius succeeded in disarming Rose. Rose grinned at him before running over to apologize to Al, who had been hit by her wand.

"Professor," Rose said, raising her hand. "Scorpius did it, too!"

"Oh, wonderful!" exclaimed Professor Hassari. "Ten points to Hufflepuff as well, Mr Malfoy. Would the pair of you possibly like to demonstrate to the class?"

"Well..." Scorpius muttered, blushing.

"Sure!" Rose agreed eagerly.

"Class!" cried Professor Hassari over the noise. "Class!"

No one listened, everyone continued attempting to disarm their partner, although none were successful. Finally, Professor Hassari raised his wand, which emitted a loud bang, and everyone turned to look at him. "Thank you," he said. "Now, Rose and Scorpius have both been successful in disarming their partner, or, should I say, each other. They are going to demonstrate how it is done! Both of you may attempt to disarm the other at the same time, if you please. On three again; one, two, three!"

"Expelliarmous!" Rose and Scorpius cried in unison.

Both wands parted with their owners hand, flying backwards and hitting the wall. Scorpius and Rose looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Very good, very good!" Professor Hassari praised. "Five more points to each of your houses! Please continue, class."

The chaos recommenced, yells of 'Expelliarmous', and Scorpius and Rose's wands flying across the room occasionally.

"Expellaramous!" Fugley Dursley yelled.

There was a loud bang and suddenly Larcan Lovegood was lying on the floor with thick, black smoke protruding from his ears, nose and mouth.

"Mr Lovegood!" Professor Hassari cried, rushing over to Larcan's side. "Are you alright?"

"'M fine, Professor," Larcan said, hopping up and dusting off his robes.

"Carry on, then," Professor Hassari said, waving his hands at those who had stopped practicing to see what had happened to Larcan.

An hour later, Rose and Larcan remained the only two students to have succeeded in disarming their partner.

"Alright class," Professor Hassari said, handing Scorpius back his wand for the umpteenth time. "Very good work today, you're doing great." Fugley snorted skeptically. "Yes, you too, Mr Dursley. As I said, it is a complicated spell for a first year to attempt. Now, for homework, I should like you to practice. Get together with a friend and try to disarm them a couple of times. If you don't succeed, do not be discourage, just try again, for practice makes perfect!"

"How did you learn that spell so fast?" Martie Finnigan asked Rose as they walked back to Gryffindor tower with Mariah Finley after Defence Against the Dark Arts.

"I dunno," Rose said, shrugging. "I just kinda did it, you know?"

Martie laughed. "No," she said. "I don't know."

"Nor do I," said Mariah. "I tried and tried and nothing happened. At all. Martie at least made my wand move a bit."

"It did not move!" Martie argued. "You moved your hand to make me think that I had done something!"

Rose laughed. Martie and Mariah argued all the way up to Gryffindor tower and all the way down to the Great Hall about whether or not Martie had actually made Mariah's wand move. It was only once the two friends had food to distract them that they shut up.

Five minutes later, James, Fred and Franklin came to join the three girls. James was silent for a minute, rocking back and forth in his chair as if he was dying to say something, before he finally cracked.

"I can't wait for Quidditch tomorrow!" he exclaimed. "It's gonna be so good! You girls are coming, I take it?"

"Obviously," Rose said, rolling her eyes. James was still having trouble with not talking about Quidditch constantly. "I've only told you so about a million times."

"And you two lovely ladies?" James asked Mariah and Martie.

Mariah giggled. She fancied James. "I'm coming," she said between giggles.

"Me too," said Martie, although it came out more like, 'Mmmm hoo,' as her mouth was full of potatoes.

"Are you nervous Fred?" Rose asked.

Fred nodded. "A bit," he said, half-grinning.

"Nervous!" James scoffed, even though Rose's question had not been directed at him. "Ha! I'm not nervous. Being nervous is for babies. No offence Fred."

Fred, however, did look offended, very much so. "Don't worry about it," Rose whispered to Fred. "James just has a really big head."

"What was that?" James asked cheerily.

"Nothing," Rose muttered. Fred chuckled softly.

"Hey," James said suddenly. "Why is that Malfoy kid coming over here? I thought he was in Hufflepuff..."

Rose winced. James did not know that she was friends with Scorpius, and she would rather it stayed that way. "Go away, Scorpius!" she tried to tell him silently, willing him to read her mind. "Not now, not here!"

"Hey Rose," Scorpius said, turning slightly red as James glared at him. "Do you fancy taking a walk with me after dinner?"

"Uh, sure," Rose said, blushing furiously. "I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall?"

"Okay," Scorpius said, grinning.

James stared after Scorpius' retreating back in shock.

"Rose!" Fred exclaimed. "You didn't tell us you'd got yourself a boyfriend! And Scorpius Malfoy, no less!"

"He's not my boyfriend!" Rose said. "He's my friend, and you don't know him, just because he's a Malfoy he's not automatically a bad person!"

"You may not think that he's your boyfriend," Larcan said, leaning across the table. Rose had been unaware of his presence until just then. He had obviously been eavesdropping on their conversation. Did he always do that, Rose wondered, or was it just occasionally? "But he thinks that you're his girlfriend."

Rose blushed even deeper, if possible. "Well, I'd better go set him straight then," she said, embarrassed.

"Have fun," Mariah teased, wiggling her fingers at Rose as a goodbye.

"Hey," Rose said, joining Scorpius outside the doors of the Great Hall.

"Hey," he said. "So, will you walk with me?"

"Yeah, I said I would, didn't I?"

"Sorry if I embarrassed you. Those guys that you were sitting with... I don't think they like me."

"Oh, don't mind James and Fred," Rose said reassuringly. "They're just... Their parents have told them things about your family. I guess they think that you have to be exactly like your father... And your grandfather."

Scorpius scowled. "Malfoy," he said. "It's an awful name, an awful family, with an awful reputation."

"You're not awful!" Rose said quickly.

"I dunno," Scorpius said slowly.

"What do you mean?"

"I dunno, it's just..." Scorpius began. "You're so convinced that I'm such a good person. But what if I'm not? I know that you, for one, are a much better person than I am."

Rose shook her head. "Look behind the family, Scorp," she said. "That's what matters. Who your family is... That doesn't define who you are. It may refine others opinions, but you have to prove them otherwise, right?"

"I guess..."

"Like, take James for example," Rose continued. "Everyone's going to assume that he's going to be an amazing Quidditch player, just because his dad was amazing. They'll think that it's a sure thing that Harry Potter's son will be the best Seeker in the school, but who knows? Maybe he sucks. Larcan almost beat him at try-outs."

"Larcan _Lovegood_?" Scorpius asked, astounded. "But he seems so..."

"Odd?" Rose interrupted. "Yeah, I know. He was pretty fast though. And he was on a Nimbus, and James had his Thunder Clash."

"Wow," Scorpius said. "I never would have guessed."

"Do you play Quidditch?" Rose asked as the pair strolled past the Whomping Willow.

"A bit," Scorpius said. "My dad wanted me to try-out for the team, even though I'm, you know, a first year. But I told him that I didn't want to embarrass myself in front of everyone, and there was no chance I'd make it. Maybe next year, if I'm a bit better."

"What position?"

"Huh?"

"What position do you play?"

"Oh!" Scorpius said, laughing. "Well, my dad wants me to be a Seeker, so whenever he's watching I play Seeker. But I actually prefer Chaser. I have a Thunder Clash, of course," Scorpius rolled his eyes, "'Nothing but the best for my son!' as my dad puts it. That's not the real reason though. He just thinks that having a bad broom is like being a muggle-born. Bottom class, in his opinion. What about you, d'you play?"

"Yeah," Rose said. "I have a Thunder Clash, too, Uncle Harry gave it to me for my birthday in the summer. I play Chaser. Me and Hugo, my little brother, play with my cousins a lot. James never played Seeker though, that was always Lily. She's a great little Seeker, and she's so cute. I love Lily. No, James was always a Chaser or a Beater. He was fairly good at that, though. It's great, I have so many cousins, we can play full games. Seven on seven, you know. My uncle has a set of Quidditch balls, and all of us have broomsticks, of course."

"Awesome," Scorpius said, grinning. "I'll bet you're really good."

"Thanks," Rose said, grinning as well. "I'm okay, I guess."

"Does your uncle ever play with you?"

"Uncle Harry?" Rose asked. Scorpius nodded. "Yeah, he plays a lot. He misses playing Quidditch at Hogwarts, he says."

Scorpius laughed. "I wish I had your family instead of mine. They must be so cool."

"Yeah, but it gets annoying when people come up to you in the streets and say 'Oh my God, you're Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger's daughter!' or 'Can you get your uncle's autograph for me?'"

"Better than, 'Wasn't your grandfather a Death Eater?' or 'Was your father the one who was supposed to kill Dumbledore for You-Know-Who?'"

"People have asked you that?" Rose asked, shocked.

"No, but I know it, and I resent it."

"But it wasn't you, Scorpius, as I've been trying to tell you, it was your father and your grandfather who were bad, not you."

"Rose..."

"Yeah?"

"Sorry to change the subject on you, but I want to get something clear," Scorpius said, apparently nervous. "Are you my girlfriend?"

"Scorpius, I- "

"I knew it," Scorpius said resentfully. "I knew it. You'd never want to go out with a Malfoy, no matter if he was like his father or not."

"Scorpius, I didn't answer yet!" Rose said.

"Oh, sorry."

"I was going to say, before you so rudely interrupted, that I thought that we were just friends, but, before you interrupt again," (Scorpius looked as if he wanted to interrupt), "I would not object to being your girlfriend. In fact, I'd be delighted."

Scorpius grinned widely. "Thank you so much, Rose. I actually have to go, I told Humphrey that I'd meet him at seven to play a game of chess."

Rose laughed. "Okay. Walk me back to the castle?"

"Sure." Scorpius took Rose's hand in his and they walked slowly back towards the castle together.


	6. Because I Like The View

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Six

Because I Like The View

The day of the first Quidditch match of the season, Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff, had finally arrived.

Applause rang through the Great Hall as the Gryffindor team trooped over to their table to grab a few bites of breakfast before the big game. James grinned cockily and waved at Rose and Albus, who were sitting together, despite the fast that Al was still mad about the whole Scorpius thing.

"How's the boyfriend?" Mariah whispered into Rose's ear, sliding into a seat between her and Martie.

Rose blushed deep crimson. Before she could answer, James and Fred sat down opposite her, eliminating any possibility of mentioning Scorpius Malfoy, or the word 'boyfriend'.

"We'll talk later," Rose muttered pointedly, motioning to her cousin with a small jerk of the head.

Mariah nodded understandingly and turned her attention to her plate of eggs and bacon. On the other side of the Gryffindor table, a certain red-headed Beater had not even touched his toast.

"Aw, c'mon Fred!" James encouraged. "You can't play Quidditch on an empty stomach! Have some toast! Or scrambled eggs, aren't they your favorite? Come on, eat something!"

"I can't," said Fred, pushing his plate away from himself. He looked quite pale. "I'm way too nervous."

"Why, though?" James asked looking confused. He had to be the only wizard in the world who had not been nervous before his first Quidditch match. He also had to be the most tactless wizard in the world. "We'll cream Hufflepuff, we have an amazing team. And it's in our blood, our family have been great Quidditch players. My dad was amazing, of course, and my mum played too. Your dad was a great Beater, and your mom was a pro Chaser. She was even the team captain once! What are you worrying about? Or is little Freddy afraid of the Bludgy-Wudgies?"

"I am not afraid of the Bludgers!"

But Rose could tell that this was not completely the truth, judging by the look on Fred's face. "You'll do great, Fred, I know you will," she assured him.

"Thanks, Rose," Fred said, flashing his cousin a weak grin.

"Team!" Robyn Cullen, the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, called suddenly. "Time to go!"

James grabbed Fred's untouched piece of toast and stuffed it into his mouth before following the rest of the Gryffindor team out the door.

"Good luck!" Rose called, as the Gryffindor table burst into applause once more.

Within thirty minutes, every witch and wizard that attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was seated in the stands surrounding the Quidditch pitch. Amongst the mass of red and gold that was the Gryffindors sat Rose, squashed in between Mariah and Martie.

Rose was staring at the opposite side of the stands, flooded with Hufflepuff's house colors of yellow and black. An enormous banner hung below them, on it a giant badger with a sparkling yellow letter 'H' painted upon its back. Rose was trying vainly to spot Scorpius amidst the clump of Hufflepuffs.

Suddenly, Rose felt a tap on the small of her back. Turning around, she was astonished to see Scorpius Malfoy crouched inside the stands. He put a finger to his lips and motioned to Rose with the other hand.

"Um, I'll be back in a minute," Rose told her friends.

She followed Scorpius to the edge of the stands, and it was then that she saw the small opening for the first time.

"Come on," Scorpius said, offering Rose his black gloved hand to help her through the small hole. "I know a better place to watch the game from."

Rose soon found herself directly underneath the stands in which the teachers sat, staring out a large opening, much bigger than the one she had come here through. She could see the pitch perfectly; as Scorpius had said, they must have had the best view out of everyone else in the school.

From one end of the pitch, the Gryffindor team, in scarlet robes, marched towards Madam Bell. From the other, the Hufflepuffs, sporting robes of canary yellow.

Robyn shook hands with Newt Ferris, a seventh year, Hufflepuff Chaser and captain. They then mounted their brooms and shot into the air, followed by their teams, the Quaffle, the Bludgers, and the elusive Golden Snitch.

Rose watched as James turned into a scarlet blur on his Thunder Clash 21, circling high above the rest as he searched for the Snitch... while also showing off a bit.

"And Robyn Cullen of Gryffindor immediately takes possession of the Quaffle," said Jenna Rowling, a third year Ravenclaw girl, who was obviously commentating. "She dodges a Bludger, nice hit there from the Hufflepuff Beater, Mitch Kane, and she nearly rams into opposing Chaser Sydney Warrent of Hufflepuff, obviously, I did say opposing didn't I? Cullen passes the Quaffle to Cydney Meyer, a very strong Chaser, not unlike Cullen herself, also of Gryffindor, who ducks another Bludger, another nice hit by Mitch Kane of Hufflepuff, and she shoots, she... SCORES! Ten points to Gryffindor! Bad luck for Nick Arsenault, Hufflepuff Keeper... Maybe next time, Arsenault!"

Rose cheered loudly with the rest of the Gryffindors, laughing as James performed a couple of loop-de-loops, pumping his fist in the air.

Play resumed; Sydney Warrent, the Hufflepuff Chaser, was zooming across the pitch with the Quaffle.

"Let's go, Syd," Scorpius muttered, teeth clenched. "You've got this."

But Sydney dropped the Quaffle, which was caught, much to the delight of the Gryffindors, by Violet McEwen.

"Ten more points to Gryffindor!" Jenna cried as the Quaffle soared past Arsenault once again.

Cole McPhee, the other Hufflepuff Beater, vented his feelings by whacking a Bludger at James. James, at the bottom of another loop-de-loop, didn't see the Bludger coming until it was too late.

"Look out!" cried Fred, zooming over to try to stop the Bludger with his own Beater's bat. But his attempt was in vain- the angry black ball connected with James' face with a _smash._ Blood spurted everywhere; his nose appeared broken.

Robyn, spotting James' bloody nose, made to call for a time-out. However, James shook his head defiantly; he obviously wasn't about to let a broken nose get in the way of his glory.

Robyn shrugged and seized the Quaffle from an unsuspecting Brynn Botnooke, another Hufflepuff Chaser. Robyn's fellow Chasers on her tail, she zoomed forward to score again.

Scorpius leaned over to whisper in Rose's ear as she applauded. "Hawk's head attacking formation, right?"

Rose was sure that her Uncle Harry had pointed this move out to her before, while watching a match between the Tutshill Tornadoes and Puddlemere United. "Er, yeah, I think so," she whispered back.

"What's this?" Jenna Rowling said excitedly. "It appears as though James Potter of Gryffindor has spotted the Snitch! Potter, coincidentally, is the son of the famous Harry Potter, vanquisher of You Know Who and ex-Gryffindor Seeker himself! Yes, sure enough, I think I can see the Snitch as well, Potter is going to catch it! Where is Eliana Miller? Where is the Hufflepuff Seeker? Watch out, Miller, you're about to be beaten by a second year!"

Eliana Miller appeared out of nowhere and was suddenly on James' tail. The pair plunged towards the ground, a blur of yellow and scarlet, and James reached out his arm, dark red blood flying everywhere, and-

"He's caught the Snitch!" Rowling cried. "James Potter of Gryffindor has caught the Snitch, earning his team an extra hundred and fifty points! That gives us a score of one hundred and eighty to nil for Gryffindor! Good job, Potter!"

James punched the air again triumphantly, holding the tiny golden ball up high in his right fist for all to see, a broad grin splitting his blood stained face.

The rest of the Gryffindor team zoomed over to James, thumping him on the back and whooping loudly in appreciation. Above the tumultuous applause, Rose could faintly hear Albus crying, "That's my brother!"

"So, do we sneak out now and blend in with the crowd, or do we wait until everyone's gone?" Rose asked casually, taking Scorpius's gloved hand into her own, liking the feeling of their entwined fingers.

"Let's wait until everyone else has left, shall we?" Scorpius suggested. "Then we can sneak back up to the castle alone. Congratulations on the win, by the way."

"What are you congratulating me for?" Rose asked, laughing. "It's not like I was playing or anything."

Scorpius shrugged. "I dunno," he said. "I just felt like I should congratulate you. It felt like the right thing to do, you know?"

"Sure," Rose giggled.

After ten minutes or so, it seemed as if everyone was gone. "Let's go," whispered Scorpius, pulling Rose along by the hand.

"Where were you two?" demanded an angry voice from behind them as Rose and Scorpius snuck back through the hole in the stands.

Rose swivelled around in shock. She had thought that everyone would have left by now. Why would you bother hanging around after the game was over?

Albus Potter was standing ten feet away from Rose and Scorpius, his hands balled into fists, pale white and quivering in anger.

"I saw you disappear just before the game started," al said. Rose began to shake her head at her cousin, her brown eyes wide. "Don't even try to deny it, Rose, I _saw _you disappear. Where did you go?"

"We- we were-" Rose spluttered.

"We were watching the game from under the stands," Scorpius admitted. "There's a really good view right under where the teachers all sit."

"I didn't ask _you_, Malfoy," Albus spat. "Would you leave my cousin alone? Weasleys and Malfoys are not supposed to like each other! It's, like, the law! Rose, I thought you knew better. I thought you had better taste than _that_."

"Lay off him, Al!" Rose cried angrily. "You don't even _know _him! If you'd just give him a chance, he's nothing like his father, nothing at all! He's the opposite actually, he's really, really nice."

"He's brainwashed you, obviously," Al sneered, glaring at Scorpius with intense dislike.

"Al, you're not my mother, you're not in charge of me, so will you _please _just leave me _alone_!" Rose cried.

With that, she turned tail and ran towards the castle without a backwards glance.

*

When Rose returned to her dormitory, Mariah and Martie were waiting for her.

"Where did you disappear to?" demanded Mariah. "You were gone for the whole game! I thought you had to go use the washroom or something."

"This has something to do with Scorpius, doesn't it?" Martie asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

Rose blushed a deep red.

"Oh my God Rose, tell us!" Mariah practically shrieked.

Rose explained what had happened hesitantly, blushing again every time Martie or Mariah giggled in delight. The only part she left out was the scene with Albus.

"You really, really like Scorpius, don't you, Rose?" Martie asked.

Rose nodded. The next thing she knew, she was spilling her inner soul into her conversation with her best friends; she told them of the way her skin tingled when she was with Scorpius, how every time she saw him, she had the sudden urge to smile, and the perfect way their hands fit together, as if they were made for the purpose of holding each other.

"But this is all good, right?" Mariah asked.

"Of course," Rose replied, confused.

"Then why were you upset when you came in?"

Rose hesitated. "Albus..." she began slowly. "Well, he doesn't like Scorpius. He doesn't think I should hang out with him. He was waiting; when we came out of the stands he was standing there, all alone, waiting for us. He got really mad, and we had this fight, and..."

She stopped there, unable to continue.

"Isn't it obvious?" Mariah whispered.

"Isn't what obvious?" Rose asked.

"He's jealous!"

"Don't be stupid, Mariah, he's my cousin!" Rose exclaimed, appalled. "I think he's just being a git."

"Maybe he is," Mariah said. "But I don't mean jealous as in he likes you. The way I see it, he thinks that Scorpius is hogging you. You're always with him; Al just wants to spend more time with you. I'm sure he misses hanging out with you."

"Maybe you're right," Rose said skeptically. "But I doubt it."

Mariah opened her mouth to reply, but Martie shushed her. "Someone's coming," she whispered.

Surely enough, in walked Danielle Cummings and Sarah Spinnet, the other two girls in their dormitory, laughing and carrying on about something.

"We'll talk later," Rose whispered. "Now if you'll excuse me, I should go to the library, I have some homework to do."

**Author's Note:** **Eliana, if you read this, (Robyn, I think you should make her read it) just because you are in Hufflepuff doesn't mean you're not cool. I'm in Hufflepuff too, if that makes you feel any better. You are a wicked awesome Seeker (James just got lucky), and I love you. :)3**


	7. Keepers and Kisses

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Seven

One Very Good Quidditch Player and One Spectacular Snogger

The only thing that differed this morning from others was that fact that Rose's brown barn owl, Fudge had brought her two letters; one from her parents, and one from Scorpius Malfoy.

Intrigued, Rose tore open the letter from Scorpius first.

_Rose,_

_Meet me on the Quidditch pitch after dinner. Don`t tell anyone that you`re coming._

_Love, Scorpius_

Rose tucked Scorpius's letter into her jeans pocket casually, hoping that none of her friends or cousins would notice and ask what the letter had been about. She let out a breath of relief when no one did, and opened the second letter. There were two sheets of parchment inside. Rose opened up the first one, only to see her mother's writing.

_Dear Rosie,_

_How are you doing, honey? How are your classes? We're quite well, Hugo is getting very excited for that Quidditch match that Uncle Harry is taking him to see for an early birthday present. I can't believe it's almost Christmas, time is flying by so quickly! Your father and I are both very excited that we will be seeing you soon, and Hugo is delighted that you will be home for his birthday. I do hope you are studying hard, your exams are coming up-_

Rose shook her head, laughing quietly. Exams weren't till June! Her mother was crazy.

_-and they won't be easy, don't forget. Don't be like your father, "They're ages away!" Honestly, and he wonders why he never got any Outstandings in his O.W.L.s. Harry told us about the first Quidditch match, I'm quite delighted Gryffindor won. Apparently James was absolutely raving about his amazing capture of the Snitch. I can't quite believe that he dived off of his broom, somersaulted over the Hufflepuff Chasers, caught the Snitch in front of the Hufflepuff Seeker's face and landed on his broom again! It must have been quite something to watch!_

"James, you liar!" Rose exclaimed.

James looked up from his waffles. "What are you on about, Rose?" he asked.

"You told your father that you dived off of your broom, somersaulted over the Hufflepuff Chasers, caught the Snitch in front of the Hufflepuff Seeker's face and landed on your broom again?"

"Um, well, yeah, kinda," James said, turning red.

Rose shook her head and returned to the letter.

_Missing you lots, love from, your mother,_

_Hermione Granger... or should I say, Hermione Weasley_

_P.S. Write back soon!_

Rose put her mother's letter back into the envelope and took out the second sheet of parchment. This one was written in her father's handwriting.

_Hey Rosie,_

_Your mum told me that I should write to you, even though I said that she could just write what I had to say in her letter. Anyway, if she's stressing you about exams, don't freak, they're AGES away. I love you, I miss, you, I don't know what else to say... Oh, I can't wait to see you at Christmas break. Tell the cousins I say hi. And... I heard that James is a great Seeker. Say hi to Neville for me, too. Or, sorry, Professor Longbottom, rather. Well. I must go. Harry and I are going to a Muggle bar, there's a nice looking barmaid there. Don't tell your mother. She didn't read this letter, so don't worry._

_Love,_

_Ron 'Yo Daddy' Weasley_

Rose laughed.

"What is it?" Mariah asked.

"Here," Rose said, passing her the letter.

Mariah laughed as soon as she had finished reading, and then passed the letter to Martie. Martie laughed as well, and handed it back to Rose.

"Your dad's funny," Martie said. "I wanna meet him."

"You should come over sometime in the summer," Rose said.

"We should get to class," Mariah said. "Professor Dante will be mad if we're late for Charms again."

"_Sir_ Dante," Rose corrected, laughing.

"Does he have to be so formal?" Martie asked, shaking her head.

The day dragged by. Rose couldn't concentrate during Charms, Potions, History of Magic or Transfiguration. All she could think about was the mysterious letter from Scorpius and their rendezvous that night. Finally, classes were over. She ran up to the owlery to send a quick reply to her parents' letters before hurrying down to eat dinner.

"What's with you?" Martie asked as Rose scarfed down her gourmet pizza.

"Isn't it obvious?" Mariah asked, her voice teasing. "She's meeting Scorrrrpius."

Rose rolled her eyes, but she did not deny it. Having swallowed everything except the crust of her pizza, Rose said a quick goodbye to her friends and headed towards the Quidditch pitch.

Scorpius was waiting, and he was carrying two Nimbus 2000s and a bright red Quaffle.

"How did you-" Rose asked in awe.

"Never mind how," Scorpius said, grinning. "Let's play."

"How are we supposed to play?" Rose asked. "We only have two players. And if I remember correctly, we're both Chasers. How's that supposed to work? Not to mention how much trouble we'll be in if we're caught."

"We won't be caught," Scorpius assured her.

"You sound quite sure of yourself," Rose laughed.

"Don't worry, I am," he said with a grin. "And we can take turns playing Keeper, while the other tries to score."

Rose hesitated. If they were caught-

"Come on, it'll be so much fun!" Scorpius urged.

"Fine, I'll do it," Rose replied, taking the broom Scorpius was holding out and grinning nervously.

They shot into the air, Scorpius leading, Quaffle in hand. They headed towards the goalposts farthest from the castle, so they would have as little chance of being seen as possible. Scorpius took the Keeper's position in front of the three goal hoops and spun around, tossing Rose the Quaffle.

"Good catch," he said approvingly. Rose had caught the Quaffle with the tips of her fingers just before it could whiz over her shoulder.

"You want to see good?" she taunted, tossing the Quaffle up into the air and catching it again without even looking. "I'll show you good."

She threw the Quaffle towards Scorpius's right hoop with all the force she had. Scorpius, calculating all of Rose's movements, lunged to his right. The Quaffle suddenly spun over on itself and changed direction, heading now for the left hoop. Before Scorpius could say "Wow," the Quaffle had gone through the hoop and Rose was zooming over to stop it from hitting the ground.

"How did you do that?" Scorpius demanded, awed. "Did you charm the ball or something?"

"No," Rose said shrugging. "I just have a lot of practice, I guess. Ready for another one?"

"Sure," Scorpius said, although he did not sound very sure.

Rose scored on Scorpius at least twenty more times (he didn't stop a single one) before they switched positions.

"You really should try out for the team next year," Scorpius said seriously as Rose tossed him the Quaffle.

"I plan to," Rose said simply.

"You'll make it," Scorpius said, a certainty in his voice.

"I hope so," Rose said, grinning, glad that Scorpius was so sure of her abilities. "Now come on, let's see what you've got."

"I'm not even close to as good as you, but I'll do my best," Scorpius said.

He tossed the Quaffle towards Rose, who immediately smacked it away from the hoop with the tail of her broom. Scorpius flew over to retrieve the Quaffle and tried again. Again, Rose pulled off a spectacular save.

Rose laughed at the frustrated look on Scorpius's face after she had saved the seventh shot. "I've had quite a bit of practice at Keeper, too," she admitted.

"Yeah, so I see," Scorpius said, letting go of his frown.

"Do you wanna do something else now?" Rose asked.

"Why, are you bored?"

"Nah, I'm just way to good for you."

They both laughed.

"Let's go, I have another idea," Scorpius said.

Rose tossed him the Quaffle and followed him to the ground. She handed Scorpius her broom and waited at the edge of the pitch as he disappeared into the dark with the equipment.

"So are you going to tell me where you got those?" Rose asked casually.

"Nah, maybe some other time," Scorpius said, his eyes twinkling. He grabbed Rose's hand and pulled her towards the castle. "Let's go, we have to be back in our common rooms by nine thirty, and it's quarter to nine now."

"Where are we going?" Rose asked curiously.

"It's so cool, you'll love it," Scorpius said. "But it's a surprise."

Soon Rose found herself staring at a blank stretch of wall in the seventh floor corridor, just past the statue of Barnabus the Barmy. Scorpius was pacing back and forth in front of the wall. Suddenly, a large wooden door appeared out of no where. Scorpius opened it and pulled Rose in by the hand.

"Welcome," he said. "To the Room of Requirement."

The room was small and very cosy looking, with a few large red armchairs and a love-seat seated around a small fire. There were flowers decorating the room, which was a pretty blue color. There seemed to be no roof, as if the room opened up to the sky, very similar to the Great Hall ceiling. Stars twinkled above Rose's head as a very slow, very romantic song began to play, the lights dimmed, and candles flickered into life on a small coffee table in front of the fire.

"This is cute," Rose said appreciatively. "What is it? I never knew it was here."

"My dad told me about it," Scorpius said, grimacing, as he always did when he mentioned his father. "It's a secret room that turns into whatever you need it to be. All you have to do is walk back and forward three times in front of the wall out there, thinking over and over what you want, and the Room will show up. It's cool, eh?"

"Yeah," Rose whispered. It was more than cool. It was breathtaking. It was perfect. And she was alone in a candle-lit room with her boyfriend. Scorpius inched closer to Rose on the love-seat, and she experience a set of chills that had nothing to do with the temperature in the Room.

"I really, really like you, Rose," Scorpius whispered in her ear.

"I like you too," Rose breathed, trying to calm herself down. Inside, she was jumping up and down and freaking out, but she tried not to let it show.

Scorpius leaned in towards Rose, his eyes closed. Taking a sharp breath, Rose said, "Wait a minute."

"What?" Scorpius asked, drawing back, looking surprised and hurt. "Do you not want to kiss me or something? Am I moving too fast for you? Or are you just afraid?"

"No, I'm not afraid," Rose said. "And you're not moving too fast. I _do _want to kiss you... It's just..."

"It's just what?" Scorpius asked when Rose broke off.

"You say this Room will change into whatever you want?"

"Are you changing the subject on me?"

"Answer my question, and then I'll answer yours."

"Fine," Scorpius said. "Yeah, the Room will become whatever you want or need it to be. Within limits, of course, but they're pretty far off."

"Good," Rose said.

"Why good?" Scorpius asked. "You didn't answer my question yet. Are you changing the subject on me?"

"No," Rose replied shortly. "It's just... I've always thought that kissing in the rain sounded really romantic."

Before Rose had finished her sentence, the armchairs, love-seat, candles, fireplace and music all disappeared, only to be replaced by a beautiful flowery meadow. Rose and Scorpius were standing hand in hand in a patch of lilacs, lilies, daffodils and roses. Rose glanced up, and the fluffy white cloud above her head suddenly turned grey and released a shower of light rain. She turned to Scorpius. "Now I'm ready," she said smiling.

He stepped closer, and it was almost too close. Rose's heart was pounding faster than it ever had, her fingers trembling. She too stepped closer. She could see every detail of Scorpius's beautiful face. The perfect symmetry of his pale, pointed features was astounding. His blond hair remained perfectly in place, as it had been before he had gotten wet. His grey eyes sparkled. Rose had never thought that grey eyes were beautiful, but then she had seen Scorpius. His eyes were the most beautiful she had ever seen. There were a lot of unsaid things in those eyes. There was fear, mystery, truth and lies. But there was also a fire illuminated behind those grey irises, and that fire was love. And that fire was directed at Rose, and her waiting lips.

If Rose had expected the kiss to be awkward, she had been wrong. It was perfect in every way. Scorpius's soft lips brushed across Rose's in a way that made her feel special beyond imagination. She held him tight, never wanting him to let go, as she kissed him back, hoping that he was feeling the same way as she was; elated, amazed, happier than she had ever been in her entire life. The rain poured down on them, drenching them, but, somehow, it made the moment that much more perfect.

After what seemed like hours, they broke apart. Rose's lips tingled. It felt weird, now, not to be kissing him any more, which was odd, since she had only ever kissed him once.

"We should get back to or dormitories," Scorpius said hesitantly, sounding as if he really didn't want to go, which was exactly how Rose was feeling.

"Yeah," Rose sighed. "I guess we should."

She must have sounded very forlorn, for Scorpius embraced her tightly. "I'll see you again tomorrow," he said. "I promise."

"I know," Rose said, "but Christmas holidays are coming up in a couple of weeks. Then I won't see you for three whole weeks. I don't know how I'll manage."

Scorpius laughed. "We just met in September, and now you're claiming that you can't survive over Christmas break without me," he summed up.

"Yeah, pretty much," Rose said, laughing as well. "I will miss you though," she added, more seriously.

"Me too, but we have a couple more weeks before we have to worry about that," Scorpius reminded her.

"Right."

"And right now, if we don't get back to our dormitories soon, Holtin will kill us."

Frank Holtin was the Caretaker at Hogwarts. He was known for his love of punishment, just as Argus Filch, the previous caretaker, had been (according to Rose's father).

"Right," Rose repeated. "Let's go."

She stepped out of the rain and shook her head. "I'm soaked," she stated. "What will I tell everyone? It's not like it's raining outside."

"Here," Scorpius said, pulling his wand out of his jeans pocket and pointing it at Rose. "Itnemaugua!"

Rose's clothes immediately dried, as did her hair. "Thanks," she said, smiling. "Now I'll do you." She pulled out her own wand. "Itnemaugua!"

Scorpius, too, dried instantly.

"Perfect," he said. "Let's go."

Scorpius walked Rose to the Gryffindor common room before kissing her hand, and, with a quick, "See you in Herbology tomorrow morning," he disappeared down the corridor.

Rose walked dreamily up to her dormitory, where she collapsed on her four-poster bed, exhausted, and fell asleep fully-clothed, dreaming sweet dreams of Scorpius Malfoy, the Room of Requirement, and sunny meadows.

**A.N.- Sorry for the stupid chapter name, I couldn't think of anything better. The original chapter name is the one written at the top here, but it wouldn't fit, so the fanfiction chapter name was changed. Sorry for any confusion. I do love Rose and Scorpius though, they're so cute. :) I know they're a little young to be boyfriend and girlfriend, and to be kissing and all that, but I don't care, I still think it's cute. Itnemaugua is not a real spell, I made it up, it's just auguamenti, the water spell, spelled backwards. I didn't know if there was a drying spell or not, so I just used that. I would like to take this moment to congratulate Robyn on her new coral room, and to thank Cydney for her support. Without her urging me on, this chapter might not have been posted until the next day. :P So thank you Cyd.**


	8. Christmas at the Potters'

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own anything, other than the plot. The characters, places, and everything else belong to JKR.**

Chapter Eight

Christmas at the Potters'

The last few weeks of the term flew by. When Rose wasn't doing school work or eating, she spent all of her time with Scorpius. All too soon the last day of term arrived, and Rose and Scorpius were sitting together on the Hogwarts Express, saying one last goodbye as the train rolled into Platform Nine and Three Quarters.

"I'll miss you," Rose whispered.

"Me too," Scorpius replied. "We should separate now, or our parents will ask questions. My dad would _kill _me if he found out."

"Yeah," Rose sighed. "See you next term. Have a good Christmas."

Scorpius made a face. "I'll try," he said. "My father's parents are coming over, and that's gonna suck. I hate them."

"It'll be okay," Rose assured him. With one last wave, she hurried over to Martie and Mariah.

"Hey," Martie said.

"Hey," Rose replied quietly.

"Thinking about Scorpius?" Mariah asked teasingly.

"As a matter of fact, I am," Rose said, holding her head high.

"Well, goodbye," Martie said as she descended onto the platform.

"Bye," Rose said. "I'll miss you guys." She gave them both a big hug before hurrying over to where her parents and Hugo were waiting. "Mum, Dad!" she cried, running to give her parents a hug.

"Rosie!" Hermione and Ron exclaimed at the same time.

Hey, Rose," Hugo said, grinning.

"Hey," Rose said casually. "So, did you miss me?"

"Yes," Hugo mumbled, hiding behind Ron in embarrassment.

"I missed you, too," Rose admitted.

"Come on, let's get you home," Ron said, picking up Rose's trunk and hauling it over to a nearby luggage cart. Rose picked up Fudge's cage and followed her mother, father and brother to their small silver Honda.

"So, Uncle Harry is having a Christmas party this year," Hugo informed Rose as soon as they were comfortably seated in the car. Outside, their parents were arguing over who should drive.

"Ron, you are not a safe driver," Hermione said bossily.

"Aw c'mon, Hermione!" Ron said. "I'm a wizard, what's gonna happen?"

"Doesn't he always have a Christmas party?" Rose asked, laughing.

"Yeah, but this year it's gonna be 'bigger and better than ever', according to him," Hugo said excitedly. "He's inviting _everybody. _All our family, and all his friends, and a bunch of other people that he says are 'really cool'. And we're allowed to invite people, too."

"Really?" Rose said, brightening.

"Why Rose?" Hugo asked evilly. "Is there someone _special _that you want to invite?"

Rose went silent for a minute. Yes, there was a special someone that she wanted to invite. But his family and her family didn't get on well, and so it probably wasn't the best idea to invite Scorpius Malfoy to Harry Potter's Christmas party.

"Who is it Rose?" Hugo asked, guessing, correctly, the meaning of Rose's silence.

"Oh, um, no one," Rose lied. "I think I'll invite my friends Martie and Mariah, though. What about you?"

"Not sure yet," Hugo said, his forehead creasing in thought. "Maybe Bobby Brookes from down the street. He's pretty cool. And his older sister is really pretty."

"You like Kylee Brookes?" Rose asked, laughing.

"Don't make fun," Hugo said defensively, frowning. "She's nice, and pretty."

"Sure, I guess, but she's four years older than you!"

At this point, Hermione finally won the argument and sat down in the drivers seat of the family's little Honda. Ron, looking quite grumpy, sat down in the passenger's seat. "Ready to go home, Rose?" Hermione asked, putting the key in the ignition and turning around to talk to her children.

"Definitely," Rose said.

*

It was Christmas Eve, finally the day of Uncle Harry's Christmas party. Rose was super excited, even though her guest of choice had not been invited. Instead of Scorpius, Rose had invited Martie and Mariah, as she as told Hugo she might. It turned out that Martie had already been invited, apparently Uncle Harry knew Martie's parents. Mariah, however, was a muggle-born, so when Fudge had arrived at Mariah's house, her mother had freaked out. She had been allowed to come though.

Rose had picked out a new dress for the occasion; it was lilac in color, with a very tight-fitting top and a very flowy skirt. Her mother had used a neat little spell to straighten her frizzy hair, and she had pulled half of it of her face using a purple flower clip. Her silver ballet flats, although they might not be practical for dancing, were very cute, and looked very nice with the dress.

"Rose, you look gorgeous!" Aunt Ginny exclaimed as she stepped through the large front door of the Potter's estate. Rose shook a bit of snow out of her hair and wiped her feet as she walked inside, handing her Aunt Ginny her jacket and admiring the decorations. The inside of the Potter's house had been turned into a winter wonderland. Snowflakes fell about to feet off of the high ceiling, tiny fairies in elf costumes zoomed around the air, large silver Christmas trees, decorated artfully by Aunt Ginny and Lily, were in every corner, a huge table was at the other side of the room, piled high with delicious looking food that could only have been cooked by Mrs. Weasley, Rose's grandmother, and a massive, bell adorned reindeer, sleigh and all, was standing in the middle of the room.

Hermione gasped at the sight of the reindeer. "Where did you get that reindeer?" she demanded. "And how are you supposed to have sleigh rides inside the house?"

Uncle Harry appeared suddenly beside Rose. "Like this," he said, grinning. "Everybody hop on!"

Rose climbed into the sleigh and sat beside Lily, who smiled at her and asked how her holidays were going so far.

"Good, thank you," Rose said, smiling back at her younger cousin.

"Giddy up!" Harry exclaimed, slapping on the reins and clucking loudly. All of a sudden, the roof disappeared, and the reindeer leaped into the air, pulling the sleigh with him. They soared through the air, and it was flying as it never had been before. This was way more fun than flying on a broom!

Rose laughed out loud as the wind whipped through her hair. All too soon, the reindeer pulled them into a dive, heading back for the house.

"Aw, Dad, do we have to go home already?" Albus complained.

"It's not like I want to, Al," Harry said. "But we have guests arriving any minute, and as the host, I think I should be there to greet them."

"That was amazing," Ron exclaimed as they clambered out of the sleigh.

"That was awful," Hermione said, dusting herself off.

"Aw, don't be such a spoil-sport, Hermione," Harry said. "You've ridden worse. What about the Hippogriff? Or the Thestrals, at least you can see the sleigh! Or the dragon, that was pretty intense, wasn't it?"

"True," Hermione said, laughing.

"Daddy, can you please tell us the story about how you broke into Gringotts again?" Lily asked, pulling on her father's sleeve.

"Sure, honey," Harry said, grinning.

"Oh, not again," Ginny moaned.

At that moment, the doorbell rang. "I better go get that, another time, okay, Lil?" Harry said.

Lily's face fell. "Okay, Daddy," she replied sadly.

It was Martie and her parents, Seamus and Parvati Finnigan. "Martie!" Rose cried, jumping up and running over to se her friend. "You have to check this out," she said. "The reindeer flies. Come here."

She and Martie sat down in the sleigh and Rose picked up the reins. "Are you sure you can drive this thing?" Martie asked nervously.

Rose looked over to where the adults were chatting. "Yeah, they won't even notice we're gone."

"That's not exactly what I-"

Before Martie could finish her sentence, they were soaring through the open ceiling, the wind whipping through their hair. "This is incredible!" Martie shouted over the roar of the wind, laughing.

"I know, isn't it?" Rose exclaimed. She steered the reindeer to the left, over the twinkling lights of Godric's Hollow. After a few minutes, Rose decided that she should probably return to the party.

"Ready to go back?" she asked.

"Sure," Martie replied reluctantly.

They landed softly back inside the Potter's house, only to see that more guests had arrived while they had been gone.

Soon everyone who had been invited had shown up. Martie, Mariah and Rose were sitting behind one of the silver Christmas trees, talking while they watched people dance.

"I can't believe Larcan Lovegood's here!" Mariah said.

"Yeah, his mom is good friends with my parents, and my Aunt and Uncle," Rose said. "I've never actually met her though, apparently she's a bit odd."

"His older brother's cute," Martie said quietly.

"That Lysander guy?" Rose asked. "You think?"

"Yeah, definitely cute," Martie confirmed. "Too old, but cute." Rose rolled her eyes. "Thanks, by the way, for inviting me," Martie said. "Your dad's even funnier in person."

"You're welcome," Rose said, laughing. "Not that I needed to invite you though, eh? Did you know that our parents were friends?"

"I don't think they're really close friends, or Mum or Dad would have mentioned them," Martie said, stuffing another chocolate frog into her mouth.

"Hello?" said a dreamy voice. "Why are you hiding behind that tree?"

A blonde haired, blue eyed, dreamy looking lady dressed in bright yellow robes had wandered over to the tree, spotting them behind it.

"You might be attacked by Nargles back there," she said seriously, before they could answer her first question.

"Nargles?" Mariah asked. "What are Nargles?"

"Haven't you ever read the Nargle Hunter books?" Rose asked, surprised.

"I'm muggle-born, remember?" Mariah reminded her.

"Right."

"Did you say Nargle Hunter, Rose?" the lady asked.

"Um, how do you know my name?" Rose asked, feeling quite uncomfortable.

"Doesn't everyone know your name?" she asked. "Don't you know who I am? I thought your parents might have mentioned me. They're my friends, you know. I'm Luna Lovegood. My father wrote the Nargle Hunter books, they're good, aren't they? He's also the author of the Quibbler." She looked very proud of herself.

"Oh, so _you're_ Luna Lovegood!" Rose said. "You're Larcan's mother?"

"Yes, I have a husband, isn't that lovely?" she giggled. "His name is Rolf. I met him on a Crumple-Horned Snorkack hunting expedition. It's quite romantic."

"Um, okay?" Rose asked, exchanging glances with her friends.

"I really think you should come join the party," Luna said. "The Weird Sisters just arrived, it will be much better for dancing than the music that has been playing so far. You really should come dance and talk to people, it's quite fun."

"Alright then," Rose said, standing up reluctantly. Mariah and Martie followed her lead. The three girls followed Luna out onto the dance floor, and, when she had her back turned, they quickly scampered off to the other side of the room.

"Rose, there yeh are!" a gruff voice called. Rose turned around and saw a giant of a man standing behind her, cowering over the crowd.

"Hey, Hagrid," she said. "How are you?"

"I'm decen'," he said. "I dunno, I'm gettin' on in years. This gamekeepin' stuff ain't as easy as it used ter be."

Rose grinned. "Are you enjoying the party?"

"Oh, yeah," Hagrid said. "I've just been havin' a great chat with yer Uncle Charlie. Yeh know that dragon I told yeh 'bout? Norberta? She's gonna have a baby! Charlie said he'd lemme come see 'er sometime soon. This summer I'll probably go. Once school's over fer the year. Dragons're on'y pregnant fer 'bout six months, so Norberta'll probably've had 'er baby by then."

"That's great," Rose said, laughing. Hagrid's dragon obsession had not changed, and she doubted it ever would.

"Well I'd better be goin'," Hagrid said. "I need ter go see yer parents and Harry. Haven't had the chance ter talk to 'em yet."

"Bye," Rose said.

"Wanna go dance?" Mariah asked.

"We don't have anyone to dance with," Rose laughed.

"Give me two minutes, and we will," Mariah said, grinning. She obviously had a plan.

"This should be interesting," Martie whispered.

"Definitely," Rose replied, nodding.

Promptly two minutes later, Mariah returned. Accompanying her were Larcan Lovegood, Franklin Longbottom and Fred Weasley. Mariah pulled Fred onto the dance floor, leaving Martie and Rose alone with Larcan and Frank. The two girls looked at each other. "Rock, paper, scissors," Rose muttered under her breath.

They turned their backs to the boys, who looked very confused, for a moment. "Rock, paper, scissors," they said. Rose picked rock. Martie picked scissors.

"Dang it," she said, frustrated.

Rose grinned and dragged Frank onto the dance floor after Mariah and Fred.

"What was that all about?" Frank asked, looking confused.

"What was what all about?" Rose asked, playing dumb.

"The whole rock, paper, scissors thing."

"Oh, that," Rose said innocently. "It's just... It's Larcan. He's so weird. Neither of us wanted to dance with him."

"Oh, I get it," Frank said, laughing.

"So, how are you enjoying the party so far?" Rose asked.

"It's good," Frank said, nodding appreciatively. "Good food, good music, lots of nice people, and those sleigh rides are intense."

"Definitely," Rose said, laughing. "I got to drive it. It was really fun."

"You got to drive it? Awesome, I wanna try!"

"So, is your dad here?" Rose asked.

"Yep, and my sister," Frank replied.

"Alicia?"

"Yeah."

"What about your mum? Why isn't she here?"

"My mum's sick," Frank said simply.

"Oh, that's not good," Rose said, swaying in time to the music.

Frank shrugged. "She's fine," he said. "She just has a bit of a cold. She thought it would be better if she stayed home."

"A cold?" Rose asked, confused. "Can't she cure that with magic?"

"Probably," Frank said. "I don't think that's the real reason she didn't come. I think it was just an excuse; she doesn't really like parties."

"How can you not like parties?" Rose asked, astounded.

"No idea," Frank said, shaking his head and laughing.

At that time, the song ended, and the pair broke apart. "See you later," Rose mumbled, walking off of the dance floor. She pushed through the crowd, looking for someone to talk to that she hadn't seen yet. She passed her Uncle Harry talking to a pretty black haired woman. Her Aunt Ginny was standing at the table ten feet away, glaring at them. Her parents were talking to Professor Longbottom, Martie dad, and a tall dark haired man Rose did not know. Victoire Weasley and Teddy Lupin were standing in a dark corner under a piece of mistletoe. Victoire looked up and pointed the mistletoe out to Teddy, who grinned and kissed her in response. Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister of Magic, was, against his will, most likely, talking with Uncle Percy about work. Aunt Fleur was standing at the food table with her Louis and Dominique, although she did not eat. Hugo was talking animatedly to Kylee and Bobby Brookes. Mrs. Weasley was fussing over Lily, and James and Fred were pushing through the crowd towards the sleigh.

"Hey, Rose," said a voice behind her. It was Fugley Dursley, and he was stuffing his face with treacle tart.

"Hi, Fugley," Rose said, surprised. "I didn't know you were here, who invited you?"

"Albus did," Fugley said. "And call me Lee."

"Oh, okay," Rose said.

"Great party, eh?"

"Yeah, it sure is," Rose said. "Where is Al, anyway?"

"Last time I saw him, he was with one of your uncles," Lee informed her. " I think Al said it was Uncle George."

"Probably," Rose said. "Well, I'd better go see, um, my Aunt Angelina. I haven't seen Roxanne in ages."

"Who's Roxanne?" Fugley asked, his pudgy face confused.

"My baby cousin," Rose explained.

"Oh, cool," he said. "Bye, then."

"Bye," Rose hurried away, disgusted by the fact that Fugley had been eating through-out their entire conversation.

"Hey, Aunt Angelina," Rose said, walking up to her aunt.

"Hi, Rose," Angelina said, smiling at her niece.

"How's Roxy?" Rose asked, smiling at the cute little baby girl.

"She's doing great, she just went on a sleigh ride and she loved it," Angelina informed Rose. "She's really excited for her first Christmas." Angelina covered her baby's ears. "Don't tell her," she whispered, "but she's getting a toy broomstick."

Rose laughed. "Lucky baby," she said, giving Roxanne her finger. The tiny baby girl immediately put her mouth around Rose's outstretched finger and began to suck on it, as if it was a bottle. Rose laughed again, and Roxanne let go of her finger and smile a big wet, toothless grin.

"Attention guests," Harry's voice suddenly announced, magically magnified a hundred times. "One lucky person is going to win Rudolph, our cute little reindeer here, sleigh included. And that lucky guest is... Larcan Lovegood! Congratulations Larcan. You can pick him up at the end of the party."

"I had no idea there was going to be a draw," Rose said.

"Me neither," Angelina said. She shrugged. "Well, I should go find George, see what he's up to. You never know with him, always getting into trouble, even as an adult." She shook her head. "I'll see you later Rose. Have a good Christmas."

"Thanks Aunt Angelina," Rose said, waving. She made her way over to the food table, where she grabbed a handful of Bertie Botts' Every Flavor Beans. She popped a purple one into her mouth and started to chew, before making a face and spitting it out.

"Bogies?" guessed Mariah, who had found Rose again.

"Worse," Rose said, scrunching her nose in disgust. "Eggplant."

"Gross," Mariah said. "Anyway, I just came to say goodbye. I have to go. Have a happy Christmas."

"Thanks," Rose said, grinning. "I'll see you at the end of the holidays."

"Yeah," Mariah said. "Bye!" She waved at Rose before disappearing into the crowd. Rose watched her retreating back sadly. One more person she was going to miss for the rest of the holidays.

Soon the crowd had dissipated and the Potters and Rose's family were the only ones left. "Good party, Uncle Harry," Rose said appreciatively.

"This is going to be fun to clean up," Ginny moaned.

Harry laughed. "You're a witch, Ginny," he reminded her.

"Right."

"Well, we'd better be going," Hermione said. "Come on, Rose, Hugo."

Rose followed her mother reluctantly out the door.

"Happy Christmas," Harry called out the door.

And Rose, Hugo, Ron and Hermione rolled down the snowy driveway towards home.

**A.N.- Sorry for any confusion the title change may have caused, but I like this new one better. I really like this chapter because it gave me a chance to bring back old characters at the Christmas party. I missed a lot of these characters, and I thought it was important to put them back into the story so you can see what their life is like now. I don't really like my ending, but oh, well. This story is the first in my Next Generation series, so keep an eye out for the others once this one is complete.**


	9. So This Is a Broken Heart

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and therefore do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Nine

So This Is a Broken Heart

Altogether, it had not been Rose's best Christmas ever. Over the holidays, she had learned that attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry meant constantly missing people. When she was at school, she missed her family. When she was at home, she missed her friends. She had not even got any Christmas presents worth mentioning this year. Other than Uncle Harry's Christmas party, nothing too exciting had happened. Now, finally, the long three weeks had passed and she was boarding the Hogwarts Express to go back to school.

"Mind if I sit here?" Franklin Longbottom asked, sliding Rose's compartment door half-way open.

"Um, well..." Rose said uncomfortably. "It's just that..."

"Expecting someone special, huh?" Frank smirked. "No worries, I'll find another compartment. Any idea where James and Fred might be?"

"No, sorry Frank," Rose said, shaking her head.

Rose stared at the compartment door for another solid fifteen minutes. No one else came knocking, not even Scorpius, the one Rose wanted to see the most. As the train rumbled to life, Rose decided to take matters into her own hands. She slid the compartment door open, and, leaving her trunk and owl all alone, stepped out into the corridor of the moving train, leaning on the wall for support.

She stared through the glass of door after door. A couple of times she thought she recognized Scorpius, but each time it turned out to be someone else. Finally, she reached the last compartment. Seeing a brilliantly blond head of hair, she burst into the compartment without even knocking. Scorpius was sitting alone, staring out the window of the train at the swiftly changing, yet always snowy, landscape.

"Hey, Scorpius," Rose said, grinning widely.

Scorpius turned his head slowly. There were dark circles under his eyes, and he looked as if he might have been crying recently. "And _what _do _you _want, Weasley?" he asked, with as much contempt as he could muster, which, in his current state, wasn't a lot.

"Um, I was just wondering why you didn't come sit with me," Rose said slowly, very confused. This was not the Scorpius Malfoy she knew and loved.

"Why would I sit with _you_?"

"I thought we were friends," Rose said, hurt. "I actually thought we were more than that."

"Well we're not, we never were, and we never will be," Scorpius said angrily. "Now get out of my compartment and _out of my life_."

Rose turned around and ran from the compartment, slamming the door as she went. Tears started to well up behind her big brown eyes, and just as she reached her own compartment they began to spill over. She collapsed in her seat and cried, ignoring Fudge's occasional hooting, obviously wondering what was wrong. What had happened over the holidays? Why was Scorpius suddenly the exact description of a typical Malfoy? Rose had thought he was different. She had thought that he was _special._ She had thought that he cared... But apparently not. Apparently everything they had had together had been a lie. Why? What had been the point of it all? The point of Scorpius's perfect honest, bitter truth, and sweet caring? The point of love...

So this was a broken heart.

*

Scorpius's attitude towards Rose did not change one bit after that day on the train. He ignored her during Herbology and Defence Against the Dark Arts, and whenever she tried to talk to him, it was always the same thing. "What do _you _want, Weasley?"

Rose was in a state of depression. She only left her dormitory for classes and meals, and even those she skipped occasionally. She didn't talk to her friends, although they had guessed why. And she avoided, at all cost, any contact with Albus or James. Most of her time was spent lying on the four-poster bed in her dormitory, staring at the ceiling, wondering why, constantly why, and what went wrong. What had she done to deserve this? How could he hurt her like this?

"Rose?" Martie asked tentatively. "Do you want to talk?"

"I'm not really in the mood, Martie," Rose muttered, staring at, surprise, surprise, the ceiling.

"Will you ever be in the mood?" Martie asked, tactlessly, in Rose's opinion. How could she possibly ever be in the mood?

"No."

"Then we most definitely need to talk, and _now_," Martie said seriously.

"Fine," Rose said angrily, sitting up. "What do you want?"

"We need to discuss your current behavior," Martie said. "You cannot act this way just because of a stupid _boy_! Worse, a stupid _Malfoy_ boy that you've only known for four months! You're being stupid, Rose, and you know it. Don't let Malfoy do this to you. You have to start living life again."

Rose shook her head sadly. "You don't get it Martie," she said.

"Enlighten me then," Martie said, laughing humorlessly.

"He's special," Rose said, a tenderness in her voice. "He's not like the other Malfoys. He's not even like the other boys. He really cared. He had such a kind heart, and he was so sincere. Or so I thought. I really thought that we were in love for a while there. And now he hates me and now my life is over, and... oh Martie!"

Tears poured down Rose's face, not for the first time in the past couple of weeks. "I loved him, Martie," she whispered. "I thought he loved me, too. Now I found out he was just playing games with me... Trying to spy on me for his father? But somehow, no. I just can't believe that. No one's that good an actor, not even Scorpius. Scorpius..."

"Rose," Martie moaned. "Rose, don't do this. Come on now, get up, stop crying. You're going to wipe your face and you're going to come down to dinner with me, and you are going to be civil and participate in conversion. And you are to eat your food, not just stare at your plate and pick at your meal."

"No, Martie," Rose moaned. "I'm not hungry, I'm not in the moo-"

"Don't you dare say you are not in the mood Rose Weasley," Martie snapped. "Get up, now. We're going to dinner."

"Fine," Rose grumbled angrily. "Fine. I'll come to dinner. But don't expect me to be happy about it."

"That's all I ask," Martie said, smiling for the first time and sitting down on her own four-poster bed to wait for Rose.

Rose stood up, brushed herself off, wiped her face, ran a hairbrush through her hair and put on a pair of shoes before announcing, "I'm ready."

"It's about time I heard your voice sounding civil," Martie said. She immediately marched out of the dormitory, and Rose followed without a word.

"Hey, Rose," Mariah said brightly as Rose sat down beside her.

"Hi," Rose said dully, not even looking at Mariah.

"Um, did you talk to her, Martie?" Mariah asked nervously.

"Yep," Martie said, rolling her eyes. " No can do, she's as stubborn as ever. I managed to convince her to come down to dinner but apparently we can't expect her to be happy about it."

"That's about it, eh?" Mariah said, laughing, without a hint of humor in her voice.

"Yeah, pretty much," said Martie.

"Rose, what would your parents think?" Mariah asked, rounding on Rose in a state of half-anger half-annoyance.

"They'd tell me this was stupid," Rose said in a low voice. "But whatever."

"No it is not 'whatever'!" Mariah exclaimed.

"That's it!" Martie gasped.

"What's what?" Mariah asked, confused. Even Rose looked up in slight interest, a rare occurrence these days.

"You should write your mother!" Martie said, as if this solved everything. "She'll know what to do, she'll know what to tell you!"

Rose returned to staring at her untouched plate of baked potatoes and ham. "Fine," she said, for the fourth time that evening. "I'll write my mother. But a fat lot of good it'll do."

"You never know," Martie said with a smile, her blue eyes twinkling.

*

_Dear Mum,_

_Please don't tell Dad about this, do not show him this letter, and do not mention it. Ever. Don't show anyone. Please keep it to yourself, as it is private. It is meant for your eyes and yours eyes only. _

_Now, here's the thing._ _I was friends with Scorpius Malfoy- He seemed so different, so special, so un-Malfoyish. He was really nice, and he really likes me too. We started dating, and we did all kinds of stuff together. We played Quidditch, we went for walks, and he showed me the Room of Requirement, have you ever heard of it? It's this Room that will change into anything you need or want it to be. It's really cool. We kissed in the rain there. It was the best night of my life. We were never apart- ever. I thought we were made for each other. But then I came home for Christmas. When I got back to Hogwarts, Scorpius was- different. He had changed so utterly that I wondered whether it was the same boy. He hates me mum, he really does. Every time he sees me, he gets this look in his eye, as if he wishes I'd disappear from the face of the Earth. It's positively dreadful. I just don't understand it, he seemed so sincere before, I don't know what happened. What do you think is going on? What should I do? My friends told me to write to you because they were convinced that you'd fix everything. Please prove them right, Mum. Please. I don't know what's going on, but I hate it, and I want it all to stop. I want things to go back to the way they used to be. Please help me, Mum. I need you._

_Love, if that word still has a meaning, from Rose _

Rose sealed the letter into an envelope and tied it to Fudge's leg. "Bring back an answer soon," Rose whispered, pleading.

Fudge gave a hoot and flew off into the darkness of the night, disappearing amongst the stars.

**A.N.- This chapter made me very sad. :( It was necessary though. I know it's much shorter than the last few, but it said what needed to be said. Please continue to read, and reviews are much appreciated. Thank you. =]**


	10. What Ronald Weasley Does Best

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and therefore do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Ten

What Ron Weasley Does Best

"Check mate," Ron announced, for the third time in an hour.

"Damn it, why do I suck at this game?" Harry asked, frustrated.

"Don't take it personally, Harry," Ron said. "Some of us are naturally awesome, and some of us naturally suck. It's just your bad fortune that you land in the latter category."

"Did you just-" Harry began.

Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a tapping on the window, and a faint hoot.

"It's Fudge!" Ron said, confused. "But Rose just wrote us two days ago, why would she write again?"

"Maybe someone borrowed Fudge from her," Harry suggested.

"Doubt it," Ron said, standing up to let Fudge in. "Yep, definitely Rose's writing," he confirmed. He then began to tear open the envelope.

"It's addressed to you, then, I suppose," Harry said casually, just to make conversation, biting down on licorice wand.

"Nope, Hermione," Ron said innocently, not even looking up at Harry.

Harry choked on the licorice wand and spat it out. "Why?" he asked, half amused, half disapproving. "Why do you consider it okay to meddle in other peoples' business? Do you find it fun or something?"

"Nah," Ron said, looking up with a grin. "But it's what I do best. Other than chess. And I'm a decent Keeper. And I'm pretty good at embarrassing myself in front of girls. Oh, and ruining other peoples' relationships."

"Don't forget walking in on people kissing," Harry said bitterly.

"Yeah, that too."

Suddenly, Ron's jaw dropped in shock. "What?" asked Harry. "What is it?"

Ron handed him the letter. Harry read:

_Dear Mum,_

_Please don't tell Dad about this, do not show him this letter, and do not mention it. Ever. Don't show anyone. Please keep it to yourself, as it is private. It is meant for your eyes and yours eyes only. _

_Now, here's the thing._ _I was friends with Scorpius Malfoy- He seemed so different, so special, so un-Malfoyish. He was really nice, and he really likes me too. We started dating, and we did all kinds of stuff together. We played Quidditch, we went for walks, and he showed me the Room of Requirement, have you ever heard of it? It's this Room that will change into anything you need or want it to be. It's really cool. We kissed in the rain there. It was the best night of my life. We were never apart- ever. I thought we were made for each other. But then I came home for Christmas. When I got back to Hogwarts, Scorpius was- different. He had changed so utterly that I wondered whether it was the same boy. He hates me mum, he really does. Every time he sees me, he gets this look in his eye, as if he wishes I'd disappear from the face of the Earth. It's positively dreadful. I just don't understand it, he seemed so sincere before, I don't know what happened. What do you think is going on? What should I do? My friends told me to write to you because they were convinced that you'd fix everything. Please prove them right, Mum. Please. I don't know what's going on, but I hate it, and I want it all to stop. I want things to go back to the way they used to be. Please help me, Mum. I need you._

_Love, if that word still has a meaning, from Rose _

"This is awful!" Harry exclaimed.

"I know!" Ron said. "Rose is in love with a _Malfoy_!"

Harry glared at Ron. "Some father you are," he said. 'Rose can make her own decisions, she's a big girl. Just because you hate the Malfoys doesn't mean she has too. Your daughter has a problem and all you care about it your old prejudices?"

"You only care because it reminds you of Cho," Ron sneered.

"How could this possibly remind me of Cho?" Harry asked, astounded, as always, at Ron's lack of logic and tact. "Scorpius wasn't crying while he snogged her, was he? No, he just all of a sudden started acting like a jerk. And if you don't care about your daughter, well then, I care about my niece, and I'm going to do something about it, even if you're not."

"What are you going to do about it?" Ron asked.

"Well," Harry said slowly, thinking hard. "I don't know. But I'll figure something out. Let's go get our brooms and go for a good long fly, that'll help me think."

"Sounds alright to me," Ron said, shrugging. "I'll go grab my Cleansweep."

"HA!" Harry laughed. "I forgot you were still on a Cleansweep!"

"You could have bought a Thunder Clash but _no_, it had to be a Firebolt," Ron said teasingly. "Why? Why were you satisfied with a lesser broom?"

"Firebolts are good brooms," Harry said defensively. "I don't understand the rage over the Thunder Clash 21s, they may have better acceleration, but I find that the Firebolt has better pinpoint turning, which we both know is _very _important in Quidditch."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Whatever," he said. "Can we just go fly, now?"

Five minutes later Harry was soaring through the air in the empty field by Ron and Hermione's little house. He laughed out loud. It was the best feeling in the world, flying. Even if he wasn't as nimble as when he had been a teenager, it was still the same exhilaratingfeeling, the same wind whipping through his messy black hair, the same escape from the world. It cleared his mind, as occlumency had never been able to. It gave him the ability to focus on one thing and one thing only: Rose. Only nothing came to him. Frustrated, Harry called over to Ron, "Race you round that oak over there and back!"

"No fair, you'll win!" Ron yelled back, pulling to a stop on his Cleansweep.

"Are you afraid?" Harry asked, cracking a grin. "Chicken? Do you want me to go easy on you?"

"Shut up," Ron growled, his ears turning red. "I'm not chicken. I'll race you. And don't you _dare _go easy on me, Harry Potter."

"Yes, my king," Harry said, sweeping into a deep bow, almost falling off of his broom.

"Three," Ron said, counting backwards.

"Weasley is our king," chantedHarry under his breath.

"Two," Ron growled, his ears turning red again.

"He always let Harry win," Harry chanted.

"One!"

Harry shot forward, outstripping Ron by a landslide. As he leaned even lower onto his broom, adding another burst of speed, he turned his head slightly and yelled back; "THAT'S WHY POTTER'S ALL SING, WEASLEY IS OUR KING!"

Ron burst forward, his fury propelling him closer and closer to Harry, accelerating every second. As Harry rounded the oak, Ron was almost on his tail. He kept gaining speed and the two were neck and neck, zooming towards the finish line...

"And it's Harry, by a nose!" Hermione called, suddenly appearing on the field.

"Oh, hullo Hermione," Ron said grumpily. "And I most definitely won."

"No, it was most definitely Harry," she assured him.

"Told you," Harry whispered. Ron turned his broom handle rapidly towards Harry and shot forwards, nearly knocking him off of his broom.

"Careful!" Hermione cried shrilly. Ron reluctantly pulled up. "Now, if you two are done," Hermione continued sternly. They both nodded. "I'm taking Hugo over to Angelina and George's, and then to Diagon Alley, I need some new potions ingredients. Do either of you want to come?" They both shook their heads this time. "Good, I'm off then."

"Rematch?" Harry asked, his eyes gleaming.

"You're on," Ron growled.

"Three, two, one!" Harry counted. They shot off towards the oak again, this time neck and neck from the very beginning. They zoomed around the tall tree, less than a foot apart, their feet almost touching. Ron took the corner so sharp that he almost crashed into the tree, but, by lucky chance, he managed to avoid it and take the lead. Harry bent over his broom handle to catch up. They were almost there- Five feet away... Two feet... Less than an inch...

"I definitely won that time!" Ron exclaimed triumphantly.

"Good for you," Harry said, laughing.

"Wait a minute!" Ron cried. "You let me win, didn't you?"

"So what if I did?" Harry asked, grinning innocently.

"I want another rematch!" Ron said angrily.

"Ron, we have other issues," Harry reminded him.

"Like what?"

"Your daughter!"

"Oh, right, Rose," Ron said. "So, any ingenious plans?"

"Nope."

"Hey, how about this!" Ron said excitedly. "We-"

"Ron, the last time we tried one of your ideas..." Harry began, shaking his head and laughing.

"But this is a really good one!" Ron cut in.

"Sure it is."

"Please, just listen," Ron begged.

"Fine," Harry said, rolling his eyes. "That doesn't mean I'll go along with the plan though, that just means I'll listen."

"So this is what we do," Ron said. "We go over to Malfoy's house, and we talk to him. Tell him to straighten his kid out, ask him what his problem is, and remind him that we saved his life numerous times."

"Ron-" Harry said, preparing to laugh and roll his eyes and tell his best friend that his plan was stupid. "You know what? That's actually not a half-bad plan!"

"You don't have to act all surprised," Ron said, pretending to be hugely offended. "I do have my moments of brilliance, you know."

"Sure, you do," Harry said sarcastically.

"I do though, I really do," Ron said, grinning. "So, any idea where Malfoy lives?"

"No, but I know how we can find out," Harry said. "Come on, let's land first."

"Okay," Ron agreed.

As soon as they were on the ground, Harry drew his wand from his back pocket. "Locator spell," he informed Ron, before muttering, "Locatus Malfoy Manor!"

Harry's wand spun in a circle rapidly three times before returning to it's original position. A three dimensional map started to sprout from the tip, growing bigger and bigger. A small red dot was blinking on and off in one area, and a green dot it another area. "The red dot's us," Harry explained. "And the green dot's Malfoy's house. The map will give us step by step directions. Let's get back on the brooms, we can fly there."

They mounted their brooms and soared up int the sky again. "You'd better disillusion us, just in case," Harry told Ron.

"Right," he said, and he drew out his own wand. He rapped Harry on the head, and the familiar sensation of an egg cracking on Harry's head trickled down his neck and sent shivers down his spine. The next thing he knew, he and Ron blended perfectly with the sky around them.

"Let's go," Harry said, following the large red arrow in front of him.

After a good twenty minutes of following the arrow, the green light started to blink extra hard. "I think we're almost there," Harry whispered. All of a sudden the red arrow swivelled madly on the spot and, after a spastic exhibition, finally spun down to face the ground. "That must be it, there," Harry said, pointing to by far the largest house in sight. "Ready for landing?"

"For landing, sure," Ron said, his grin failing him for the first time that evening. "For Malfoy, no."

"Come on, Ron, how bad can it be?"

"Now that you've said that, we know it's gonna be bad," Ron said_._

"Why's that now?" Harry asked.

"Remember the massive spiders?"

"How could I possibly forget?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. That's how we know?"

"That makes absolutely no sense, Ronald."

"You said it'd be fine, just little tiny spiders, right?" Ron explained. " And then it wasn't fine, there were massive spiders bigger than a house, and we were almost killed. How do we know Malfoy hasn't bred some massive species of spiders to eat us?"

"He doesn't know we're coming."

"Maybe he does."

"Shut up," Harry commanded. "I'm a trained auror, I know what I'm doing. And don't forget, this whole thing was your idea. Since when have you been afraid of Malfoy?"

"Fine," Ron groaned. "But if I die, I'm gonna kill you, Harry."

**A.N.- I had fun writing this chapter, I love Harry and Ron. :) Hope you like it to! Don't forget to review! :D**


	11. Déjà Vu

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (sadly), and I am not JK Rowling (again, sadly).**

Chapter Eleven

Déjà-Vu

Harry took a deep breath and aimed his Firebolt towards the ground. Touching down, he glanced over at Ron to see how he was doing. Ron looked paler than ever, yet his jaw was set; he looked determined. "We're doing this for Rose," he muttered under his breath, more to reassure himself than to remind Harry.

Harry threw his broom into a nearby bush, and Ron followed suite. "Ready?" Harry asked. Ron nodded resignedly.

Taking another deep breath, Harry knocked on the door, keeping a tight grip on the eleven inch stick of holly in his pocket.

A tall blonde lady with piercing grey eyes opened the door. She glared at Harry and Ron for a minute before Harry decided to break the awkward, yet somehow very loud, silence. "Is there any chance Draco's in?" he asked hesitantly.

"Draco is not here at the moment," the lady, presumably Malfoy's wife, said coldly. "But I might ask why _you _are here. Harry Potter." She nodded at Harry, although it did not seem out of respect, but rather out of spite or anger. "And a _Weasley_." She spat this last word.

Neither Harry nor Ron spoke.

"What do you want?" she cried again.

_For Rose, _Harry reminded himself. "We're here to see you about your son," Harry said, trying to keep his voice civil.

"What about my son?" Mrs. Malfoy asked, her voice piercing through Harry like a recently sharpened knife.

"Well, you see, he and my niece were good friends, and apparently they were dating," Harry explained, still struggling to keep his tone casual. "Up until after Christmas. After the holidays, your Scorpius apparently started to be an ass to my niece. We were just wondering the reason for his, and if there was any way you could step in and talk to Scorpius?" _Yeah, right._

"My son is very right to stay away from your bratty blood-traitor niece. Her mother was a Mudblood, was she not? So you can see why, perhaps, we would not want them together?"

"So this is your doing?" Harry said angrily, finally abandoning all hope of civil conversation. Claws were going to come out here; all he had to do was hope that he would be lucky and it wouldn't come down to wands. "You told Scorpius to be mean to Rose, and to ignore her and to break her heart? You forced him to stay away? Rose was right, then. Scorpius is good, and different, and honest, and genuine, unlike his parents, who are just down right ass holes."

"Yes, of course we told Scorpius to stay away from impurities like your _Rose_," Mrs. Malfoy snarled. "And of course Scorpius is good, but I should hope that he is good in a way that _I _approve of, not some silly notion of yours. And I would appreciate it if you did not insult me in my own house."

"Even Malfoy deserves better than you," Harry growled. "You're despicable."

"Say that one more time," Mrs. Malfoy whispered dangerously.

"You. Are. Despicable," Harry said, enunciating each word very clearly.

Mrs. Malfoy's hand flicked to her pocket and Harry mimicked her. Ron, a bit slow on the uptake, did not realize what was going on until both had drawn their wands. His eyes widening, he drew his own wand, and began to back away slowly. "Harry," he whispered. "I think it's time to go."

"Not until I teach this bitch a lesson," Harry muttered back.

"SECTUM-" Mrs. Malfoy cried, waving her wand angrily.

Harry quickly deflected the curse with a nonverbal shield charm. Concentrating very hard on the jelly-legs jinx, he waved his own wand silently. Mrs. Malfoy, obviously not very experienced in the way of nonverbal curses, didn't raise her wand to protect herself until it was too late. She began to wobble around, her legs seeming to have turned into jelly.

"Expelliarmus!" Ron cried, but this time Mrs. Malfoy succeeded in deflecting the spell.

"Imperio!" she cried, and, to Harry's horror, Ron's eyes glazed over. He walked zombie-like towards his entrancer and handed over his wand. He then sat cross-legged in front of Mrs. Malfoy and began to hum.

"I'm going to have to report you to the Minister of Magic for that, Mrs. Malfoy," Harry said, his voice shaking with rage.

"I don't think so, Mr. Potter," Mrs. Malfoy hissed. "OBLIVIATE!"

_What just happened? Why do I feel so angry? Am I dueling this woman? Is that why we both have our wands out? And_ _why is Ron meditating?_

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Harry asked.

The unknown woman didn't answer. She pointed her wand at Ron and whispered some incantation that Harry could not hear. Ron immediately stood up and ran at Harry like a football player would run at their opponent. Ron rammed into him with enough force to make him fall over.

"Ron, what-?" Harry began, but before he could finish his sentence, he received a sharp blow in the face. Something warm and wet began to trickle down his face towards his mouth. Blood.

Ron hit him again, and Harry was too stunned and confused to fight back. Something very unusual was going on, and it had to do with the strange woman who was standing above them, surveilling the scene with an air of triumph.

Harry was suddenly engulfed with a blackness that pressed down on him, crushing his lungs, rendering him unable to breathe, to think, or even to move.

*

Harry opened his eyes, only to find himself tied and gagged in a small, dark and empty room. "Ron?" he tried to ask, but it was impossible through the material stuffed in his mouth.

He struggled against the ropes, trying to draw his wand. _If only Luna were here again with her nail,_ he thought.

_Why am I all tied up? All I remember is playing Quidditch with Ron and then... nothing. Where am I?_

Harry tried desperately to spit the piece of material out of his mouth, but to no avail. He squirmed as hard as he could, hoping against hope that there was some way out of this, what ever it was. All he knew was that he didn't like this; the déjà-vu was way too strong. He closed his eyes, fighting against the wave of nausea that hit him as he tried not to remember... But the memory closed in on him, and it was if he was in a room full of Dementors, sucking the happiness out of the air...

_The echoing bang of the slammed cellar door had not died away before there was a terrible, drawn-out scream from directly above them._

"_HERMIONE!" Ron bellowed, and he started to writhe and struggle against the ropes tying them together, so that Harry staggered. "HERMIONE!"_

"_Be quiet!" Harry said. "Shut up, Ron, we need to work out a way-"_

"_HERMIONE! HERMIONE!"_

"_We need a plan, stop yelling- we need to get these ropes off-"_

"_Harry?" came a whisper through the darkness. "Ron? Is that you?"_

_Ron stopped shouting. There was a sound of movement close by them, then Harry saw a shadow moving closer._

"_Harry? Ron?"_

"Luna?"

"_Yes, it's me! Oh no, I didn't want you to be caught!"_

"_Luna, can you help us get these ropes off?" said Harry._

"_Oh, yes, I expect so... there's an old nail we use if we need to break anything... just a moment..."_

_Hermione screamed from overhead, and they could hear Bellatrix screaming too, but her words were inaudible, for Ron shouted again, "HERMIONE! HERMIONE!"_

"_Mr Ollivander?" Harry could hear Luna saying. "Mr Ollivander, have you got the nail? If you just move over a little bit... I think it was beside the water jug."_

_She was back within seconds._

"_You'll need to stay still," she said._

_Harry could feel her digging at the rope's tough fibres to get the knots free. From upstairs_ _they heard Bellatrix's voice._

"_I'm going to ask you again! Where did you get this sword? _Where?_"_

"_We found it - we found it - PLEASE!" Hermione screamed again; Ron struggled harder than ever and the rusty nail slipped on to Harry's wrist._

"_Ron, please stay still!" Luna whispered. "I can't see what I'm doing -"_

"_My pocket!" said Ron. "In my pocket, there's a Deluminator, it's full of light!"_

_A few seconds later, there was a click and the luminescent spheres the Deluminator had sucked from the tent flew into the cellar, unable to rejoin their sources they simply hung there, like tiny suns, flooding the underground room with light. Harry saw Luna, all eyes in her white face, and the motionless figure of Ollivander the wandmaker, curled up on the floor in the corner. Craning around, he caught sight of their fellow prisoners: Dean and Griphook the goblin, who seemed barely conscious, kept standing by the ropes that bound him to the humans._

"_Oh, that's much easier, thanks Ron," said Luna, and she began hacking at their bindings again. "Hello, Dean!"_

_From above came Bellatrix's voice._

"_You are a lying, filthy Mudblood, and I know it! You have been inside my vault at Gringotts! Tell the truth, _tell the truth!_"_

_Another terrible scream -_

"_HERMIONE!"_

"_What else did you take? What else have you got? Tell me the truth or, I swear, I shall run you through with this knife!"_

"_There!"_

_Harry felt the ropes fall away and turned, rubbing his wrists, to see Ron running around the cellar, looking up at the low ceiling, searching for a trapdoor. Dean, his face bruised and bloody, said, "Thanks," to Luna and stood there, shivering, but Griphook sank on to the cellar floor looking groggy and disorientated, many welts across his swarthy face._

The memory began to fade at the edges, and the dark room the Harry was currently inhabiting began to reappear. He could barely see Ron attempting to Disapparate without a wand from the Malfoys' cellar all those years ago, and Luna telling him that there was no way out. And as Hermione screamed again in the memory, someone else was screaming, although Harry could not tell who it was, or whether it was reality or in his head. A light flicked on, and Harry had another sudden wave of nausea.

It was Draco Malfoy.

Although Malfoy's hairline was receding, and his once brilliantly blond hair was now greying, it was still no better than the young Draco that had walked into the cellar all those years ago to fetch Griphook.

Harry's memory, still hanging faintly in front of his eyes, showed young Draco pointing his wand at the prisoners and saying, _"Stand back. Line up against the back wall. Don't try anything, or I'll kill you!"_

"What do we have here?" sneered the current Draco Malfoy. "If it isn't Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, tied up in my cellar once more. Brings back memories, doesn't it?"

Harry struggled angrily against his bindings, still trying to fight the lingering memory.

"Go ahead, have your say," Malfoy said, casually flicking his wand. The material disappeared from Harry's mouth.

"Brings back memories of us escaping, defeating you again," Harry snarled, just as Ron began to cuss loudly at Malfoy.

The corners of Malfoy's mouth twitched downward into an angry frown. "Coincidence. You had outside help. It won't happen again."

"You're despicable," Harry spat.

"And why is that, now, Potter?" Malfoy asked, grinning evilly.

"For the obvious reasons of course," Harry said loudly, trying to be heard over Ron's cussing. "For tying us up, and by the way, I would like to know _how _we came to be tied up in your cellar. And then there's the fact that you're still being such an evil git, even though we did save your life a considerable amount of times."

"And you forced your idiot of a son to be a git to my daughter against his will," Ron added angrily.

"Yes, I told Scorpius that if he did not stay away from the Weasley girl, we would remove him from Hogwarts," Draco explained. "You can see that we were angry. We had just found out that he had been sorted in to _Hufflepuff. _The shame, the shame."

"You did _what?!" _Harry exclaimed.

"Harry, don't you remember?" Ron asked, confused.

"SHUT UP!" Malfoy said.

"Malfoy, let us go," Harry said angrily. "I might just have to see the Minister of Magic about this."

"Don't you dare threaten me," Malfoy said dangerously. "I do not think that you are in any position for blackmail."

"LET US GO!" The words burst out of Harry's mouth with such force that he almost toppled over.

"I was thinking of doing just that," Malfoy said thoughtfully.

"You were?" Harry and Ron asked at the same time, shocked.

"Yes, I think I will," Malfoy said, waving his wand again. The ropes disappeared. "Now, never come to my house again, and don't you _dare_ make up some heroic story of how you escaped from my cellar."

He tossed them each their wands, which Harry had not realized had been missing. "Now go, before I change my mind," Malfoy said.

Harry followed Ron up the stairs and through the huge manor. Outside, Ron bent into the bushes and picked up two broomsticks. "We flew here?" Harry asked, confused.

"Yeah," Ron said, tossing Harry his Firebolt. "Now let's go, quickly please. I'll explain everything on the way. She must have used a memory charm on you."

"Who?" Harry asked.

"I'll explain on the way," Ron assured him. They mounted their brooms and soared into the air, leaving the Malfoy manor behind once and for all.

**A.N.-** **Sorry that it has been so long since I've updated! I've been really busy. The good news is that chapter twelve is almost done as well, so it will be up soon. REVIEWS PLEASE! :)**

**Excerpt from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, chapter twenty-three, page** **375-377.**


	12. Begging Forgiveness

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not own Harry Potter. Sadly.**

Chapter Twelve  
Begging Forgiveness

Harry and Ron returned to his and Hermione's house twenty minutes later, dishevelled and put out. "What a waste of time," Harry muttered under his breath, hiding his Firebolt along with Ron's Cleansweep in the broom cupboard before Hermione could see them. Ron nodded, trying to wipe a stubborn bit of dirt off of his nose.

"And _where _have you two been?!" Hermione demanded, reminding Harry so irresistibly of Mrs Weasley that he almost burst out laughing.

"Errr," Harry and Ron said in unison.

"And _why _is this letter from Rose _open_?" Hermione was seething. It was a wonder that Ron wasn't cowering at her feet. Harry had the sudden urge to run away.

"Three guesses who's idea it was," Harry said, a feeble attempt at sarcasm.

"RONALD BILIUS WEASLEY!"

At this point, Ron did cower. "I was curious," he almost whimpered.

"Of course you were you nosy little-"

"Hermione," Harry warned, as Hugo walked outside to see what the yelling was about.

"Is nosing in peoples' private business a habit of yours?" Hermione asked, her tone dangerous and her eyes flashing.

"Yeah, that's what I said," Harry mumbled.

"I DIDN'T ASK YOU, HARRY POTTER!" Hermione burst out.

"Mummy, what's the matter?" Hugo asked, looking concerned.

"Nothing, Hugo, you go inside," Hermione said, squeezing her eyes shut.

"But mum-"

"Hugo, GO!"

"Fine," Hugo said reluctantly, trudging back towards the house.

Once Hugo was safely out of earshot, Hermione rounded angrily on Ron once more, looking as if she was about to spit fire. "Did you just come from Draco Malfoy's house?" she demanded.

"Er..."

"Ronald," Hermione warned.

"Yeah, kind of," Ron said lamely.

"And?"

"We kind of got our butts whooped in a duel with Malfoy's wife," Ron admitted shamefacedly.

"You did _what_?!"

"Weeell, I'd better be going," Harry said quickly. "Ginny's expecting me home."

"Oh, no you don't, Harry Potter!" Hermione screamed. "Before you go, you and Ronald will write a sincere letter of apology to Rose explaining why you are a horrible uncle and an awful father. At least two feet of parchment. Off you go."

"Yes, Professor McGonagall," Harry muttered under his breath. Ron chuckled. Hermione looked murderous.

"Er, maybe we'll just- go do that thing now," Ron stuttered.

"Yes, maybe you shall," Hermione said angrily.

Harry accepted a piece of parchment from Ron and, dipping his quill into a pot of ink, began to write hastily.

_Dear Rose,_

_Your father is a complete ass. He opened the letter you sent your mother and decided to meddle and got his butt kicked by Mrs Malfoy in a duel. It wasn't my fault but, as usual, I shared the blame. Don't be mad at your idiotic father, he had good intentions, I think. So very sorry, but your Scorpius problems may well get worse. It's not his fault though, his parents are gits, just like yours._

_Love and kisses,_

_Uncle Harry_

_xoxooxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxooxxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxooxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxo __oxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxooxxooxoxoxoxoxooooxooxoxxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxo __oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxooxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxox __oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo_

Ron glanced over at Harry's parchment, obviously looking for ideas. "Hey!" Ron exclaimed. "It wasn't _all _my fault!"

"Sure it wasn't," Harry muttered, adding another few rows of x's and o's.

"You can't fill out two feet with x's and o's!" Ron said angrily.

"Sure I can," Harry replied.

Harry leaned over to read what Ron had written.

_Dear Rosie,_

"That's it?" Harry laughed. "That's all you wrote in ten minutes?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Ron said, scrunching up his face in concentration. "Give me a few more minutes."

After forty-five minutes, Ron pushed his parchment towards Harry.

_Dear Rosie,_

_I am very sorry that I meddled in your personal business. I should not have opened your letter, which was specifically addressed to your mother. I may have ruined your relationship with Scorpius, and I am very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very sorry. I would understand if you hated me, that would be completely okay. I miss you, and I love you. Oh, by the way, Scorpius is being mean to you because he wants to. His parents are forcing him. He's still a spineless git, but I don't care. I'm not going to disown you. I love you even if you love a Malfoy._

_Love Daddy_

_P.S. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. _

"Ron, you stole my idea!" Harry protested.

"You cheated first," Ron reminded him.

"And so you stole my cheat?" Harry demanded.

"Anyway," Ron said. "Let's send these before Hermione has a chance to read them over.

"Right."

"I'll call Pig," Ron said.

"Aw, c'mon, mate, can't we use a different owl? Any other owl? Just not Pig, please," Harry asked.

"Nah, if Pig's delivering a letter, he's not here annoying us," Ron said logically.

"True," Harry said. "Go get him."

Ron returned a minute later with Pig on his arm, who was hooting excitedly at the thought of delivering mail.

"Why did you keep him all these years?" Harry asked, wincing at the sight of the annoying owl. "Why didn't you buy a new owl? You could have. It's not like you can't afford it any more." Ron wasn't rich, but his family was comfortably middle class, a step up from his childhood.

"I- I guess I kind of kept him for you, mate," Ron said, his ears turning crimson.

"For me?" Harry asked, puzzled. "What ever for? I don't like him, and I am not attached to him in any way, if that's what you thought. I think he's annoying as hell, just like always."

"Right," Ron said, his ears going redder, if that was even possible.

"Why did you keep him for me?" Harry persisted, determined to pull an answer out of Ron.

Ron turned, hiding his face. He began to clumsily attach their letters to Pig's leg. "I thought, you know, since Sirius gave him to me- I thought he might- I thought that you would want to keep anything that reminded you of Sirius. Any gifts or anything that he gave us-"

"Well, you're wrong," Harry cut in angrily. He hated being reminded of the fact that Sirius was no longer alive, that he could no longer write to him for help or advice. He hated it. He hated Bellatrix Lestrange for what she had done, hated Voldemort for everything that _he _had done, for depriving Harry's life of family, of hope, and of love. He hated any reminder of that. Ron should know that better than anybody.

Ron threw Pig into the night, sighing in relief. "Now she can't read it," he said.

"Now she can't read what?" Hermione asked shrilly, entering the room a second too late.

"Just in time," Harry whispered.

"Now she can't read _what_?!" Hermione repeated angrily. "Your letters possibly? Because you've already sent them? Because they don't _meet requirements_?!"

"We'll go redo them then," Harry said, staring at the ground as he sat back down and pulled out his quill once more.

_Dear Rosie,_

_I am very sorry,_ _your mother made me redo this letter, and quite right she was, because the first one was not acceptable. I claimed that everything was your father's fault. It was not; I am equally to blame. If you despise me, I understand completely. The good thing is though, we found out that Scorpius is not ignoring you of his own terms. He is being blackmailed into doing so by his git of a father and his... mother. I believe you in that he is a good person, sincere and different from the other Malfoys. And Rosie: I believe that he loves you. You know who he reminds me of? My godfather. Sirius Black._

Harry hesitated, feeling hypocritical for mentioning Sirius after he snapped at Ron for doing the same. Perhaps he should apologise. Well, Ron understood, it was unnecessary. He shook his head, tried to clear his mind, and returned to his parchment.

_Sirius's whole family were Slytherins. They took pride in being pureblood, exactly like Scorpius's family does. Sirius hated the lot of them. He was sorted into Gryffindor, to his parents anger and disappointment. He went out of his way to emphasize the fact that he was not like his family, that he was different. At age sixteen, he ran away, to my dad's house. He didn't want anything to do with his pure bloodlines, his parents, or his younger brother, whom his parents practically worshipped, because he was exactly the kind of son they desired. Or so they thought. After Regulus, Sirius's little brother, became a Death Eater, he changed his mind. He saw what Voldemort was really doing, and didn't like it. He rebelled against it, and ended up being killed. But my point is, maybe Scorpius is like Sirius. He sees the good in the world, and he understands that his family is not part of it._ _Sirius was never a Black, never._ _From the minute he met my father, he was always a Potter. Perhaps Scorpius is the same. Maybe he's a Weasley, just like you._

_Have a great second term. Don't start studying for exams yet, as your mother probably wants, they're ages away._ _And best of luck with Scorpius, I hope you can find a way to get him back._

_Love always, and again, I'm very sorry,_

_Uncle Harry_

_xoxoxoxoxo_

It was not quite two feet, but it was close enough. Harry had used quite large hand writing.

"Done," Harry and Ron announced in unison.

"Can I read yours?" Harry asked curiously.

"No," Ron said, pulling the sheet of parchment away as Harry leaned over to try to read it. Surprisingly, it did fill out two feet. "It's private."

"Did I hear you say you were done?" Hermione asked, entering the room once more.

"Yes," Harry said, handing Hermione his letter.

Her eyes flew across the parchment, reading faster than Harry thought possible, even for Hermione. She deemed it "acceptable enough" before holding out a hand for Ron's. She skimmed his letter even faster than Harry's. "Goodness, Ronald," she said, obviously surprised. "Did you _actually _write this?" Ron nodded. "I'm impressed," Hermione said, a ghost of a smile playing across her lips. "You can send them now."

Harry made one more futile attempt at reading Ron's letter before he jerked it away and walked out of the room, in search of another owl. Harry passed Ron his own letter wordlessly, wondering what on Earth Ron wrote that could impress Hermione so much.

**A.N.- Sorry that I said this chapter would be up soon, I had forgotten that I was going to be away for a week. But it's up now, so it's all good. Please review, your support is great, it helps me out a lot. Sadly, this is the last we're going to see of Harry, Ron and Hermione for a little while. Back to Rose, Scorpius, and their forbidden love. :) Review, review, review!**


	13. Getting Absolutely Nowhere

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Thirteen

Getting Absolutely Nowhere

Rose looked up to the sky, and to her surprise, her father's owl swooped down in front of her, landing in her cereal. "Oh, Pig," she groaned, scooping the tiny, milk-sodden owl out of her bowl.

"I've never seen that owl before," Mariah said curiously. "Who's is he? He's super cute."

"Yeah, and super annoying," Rose said, rolling her eyes. "He belongs to my dad. They have a lot in common."

Martie giggled. "Is your dad annoying? I thought he was cool."

"And annoying," Rose confirmed. She tore the first letter open and began to read. "Oh no," she groaned. "What have they done?"

"What?" Mariah and Martie asked at the same time, leaning in to read the letter.

"Okay, my life is now officially over," Rose moaned.

"They dueled Malfoy's mum?" Martie whispered in horror.

"I sent my mum a letter about Scorpius," Rose said in a hollow voice. "I was hoping she'd be able to give me some advice that would help. But obviously my father found the letter first and opened it and- Oh, what am I going to do?!"

Mariah tore open the second letter and began to read in a whisper.

"'_Dear Rosie,__I am very sorry that I meddled in your personal business. I should not have opened your letter, which was specifically addressed to your mother. I may have ruined your relationship with Scorpius, and I am very, very, very' _times like one hundred! How many very's can you write? '_very sorry. I would understand if you hated me, that would be completely okay. I miss you, and I love you. Oh, by the way, Scorpius is being mean to you because he wants to.' _Because he wants to? Way to be tactless, Mr. Weasley! We had kind of already figured that out! _'His parents are forcing him.' _Wait a minute- that doesn't add up! He's being mean to you because he wants to, but his parents are forcing him?"

"Maybe it's a typo," Martie suggested, leaning in to see. "Yes, look, see here? _'Scorpius is being mean to you because he wants to._' He must have meant, '_Scorpius isn't being mean to you because he wants to. His parents are forcing him.'_"

"I hope that's what he meant," Rose said. "Keep reading, Mariah."

_"'He's still a spineless git, but I don't care. I'm not going to disown you. I love you even if you love a Malfoy.__Love Daddy__. __P.S. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry_...' He wrote '_I'm sorry_' at least a thousand times here!"

Just as the message had sunk in, an owl that Rose had never seen before landed in front of her. There were, again, two letters. The first was from her Uncle Harry. She read in silence, Mariah and Martie reading, once again, over her shoulders.

"Yes, look!" Mariah exclaimed. "'_The good thing is though, we found out that Scorpius is not ignoring you of his own terms. He is being blackmailed into doing so by his git of a father and his mother!'_"

"See, Rose?" Martie said reassuringly, giving Rose's hand a squeeze. "He did love you. It wasn't all a lie. It was real."

Rose smiled weakly, only somewhat cheered up by this fact. It didn't change anything though; Scorpius was still being blackmailed and would therefore still ignore her. It would probably get worse after their parents' confrontation.

They continued to read. The rest of the letter was quite heart-felt and touching. Harry compared Scorpius to his godfather, Sirius, which Rose knew must have been hard, because Sirius had been killed in the Second Wizard War.

The next letter was even more astonishing. It was from Rose's father, and Rose had never thought that her dad was capable of writing something this... sweet. It was really and truly touching.

_Dear Rose,_

_First of all, I want you to know that I love you, more than anything else in the world. I know I'm a horrible father. I don't deserve a daughter as good and sweet and beautiful and smart as you. When your mother told me she was pregnant, I was terrified. I didn't think that I could handle children; I thought that kids would just be one more thing I had to deal with and clean up after. But then the day came, the thirtieth of August, 2006. Your mother went into labour and it was the most awful, agonizing five hours I have ever spent in my life. Worse even than the war. I was terrified, not only for the responsibility a child brought, but also for the health of my baby. For the first time, I was scared that something would happen to you, that something would go wrong with the birth, and that I would lose you. When your tiny head popped out, and your body followed, it was relief like nothing else. The Healer pronounced you a healthy baby girl, and I nearly cried out in happiness. Ever since then, my life has been about you. All I ever cared about was my little girl, her safety, her health, and her happiness. I love you more than anything else in the world. Once, when you were five years old, you nearly died. You stole your Uncle Harry's broomstick and decided that you were going to play Quidditch with a bird. You didn't know how to fly, and it turned out that the bird was a hawk, or something similar. You got up about ten feet before the hawk attacked you. You had thrown a Quaffle at it, and you were holding the Snitch. It dived, knocking you off of your broom, which you were unstable on anyway, and left an awful deep cut on your face. You broke your leg, crushed your wrist and fractured your skull. You were in Saint Mungo's for a week. It was awful. I cried myself to sleep every night, praying for your well-being. I needed you to be okay, more than I had ever needed anything in my life. You would think that they would be able to heal you just like that, but no. The cut became infected with some kind of bird virus that the Healers had never seen before. Finally they found a remedy, but it was an awful wait. I was terrified out of my wits that I was going to lose you. And I never want to go through something like that again, so please promise me that you'll stay safe._

_My point is, when I found out that you were dating Scorpius Malfoy, I was afraid. I was afraid that his father might found out and do something horrible to you to keep you away from his son. Then I read your letter and saw that Scorpius was being a git to you, and I was so angry. I saw that you were unhappy. I don't ver want you to be unhappy. So your Uncle Harry and I decided to go talk to Malfoy and set him straight. We wanted him to tell his son to lay off and be nice to you. Even though I was horrified that my little Rosie wanted to be associated with a Malfoy, I was much more horrified that she was being bullied, and that she was unhappy. So we went to Malfoy's house and we met his wife. We ended up duelling and she kicked our asses, I am very sorry to say. But we found out that Malfoy was threatening to withdraw Scorpius from Hogwarts if he continued to see you. Scorpius did really like you, he didn't want to hurt you. But he obviously doesn't want to go home, he wants to stay at Hogwarts. I undertand completely if you hate me, Rosie, but please, please try to see it my way. Try your best to understand what I was thinking. You're a smart girl, you can do it. I believe in you. I love you, so, so much. And I am really, truly, sincerely sorry for what I did. I was wrong to meddle, I should have left it to your mother, who is ten times smarter than I am._

_Have a great second term. I'm sure your mother will try to set this Scorpius thing straight for you, somehow, and I'm sure she will go about it the right way, unlike myself and your uncle. Good luck with Scorpius, honey. I love you, and I miss you very, very, very much._

_Love from Daddy_

_P.S. I'm sorry._

"Wow," Mariah whispered. "That's so sweet."

"You have to forgive him, Rose," Martie insisted. "It's obvious he had good intentions, he just wasn't thinking straight. Boys are like that; they're just not very smart."

"I- I'll think about it," Rose said. This was the sweetest thing her father had ever said to her. She doubted he would have had the strength to say this to her face, but no matter. She wanted to forgive him, in thanks to this beautiful letter. It was hard, though, after what he had done. She would try to talk to Scorpius again today in Herbology class, and then she would see how she felt about forgiving.

*

This was the most disgusting Herbology class Rose had ever attended. They had to take samples of the Florius Carniverus urine. And how is this done? You simply take the vial Professor Longbottom gave you and stick it up the tiny pus filled hole in the center of the plant, stick your hand in the dragon dung fertilizer and tickle the roots, which is sure to make the plant pee itself. And that's not gross or anything. Oh, yeah, and I forgot to mention: the urine is puke coloured.

"Scorpius," Rose said, hurrying over to the Florius Carniverus next to where Scorpius was already working, a look of disgust on his face.

He ignored Rose, and continued to tickle the roots of his plant. Well, he didn't need to talk. He would listen, Rose knew he would. Rose could and would do all the talking.

"Scorpius, listen," Rose said pleadingly. "I know that your parents are threatening to withdraw you from school if you don't ignore me, and I understand. But we could find some way around that, some loophole, or something." Rose was getting desperate. Scorpius's face stayed completely drained off any emotion. "There's gotta be a way."

Rose was unsure whether or not it was just her imagination, but it appeared as if Scorpius shook his head slightly.

"How's your dad supposed to find out?" Rose asked. "It's not like he has spies in the school or anything crazy like that."

Scorpius suddenly looked up, wide eyed, at Rose. She gasped. "He _does _have spies! But how? And if he had spies, how did he not find out about us until the Christmas holidays?"

Scorpius rolled his eyes as if it was obvious. Rose thought for a minute, trying to figure everything out. "Your dad sent the spies in... after the Christmas holidays?" Rose asked.

Scorpius nodded slowly.

"But how?" Rose asked, even though she knew she was never going to get an answer.

They worked in silence for a while before Rose had a sudden idea. "The Room of Requirement!" she exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, what was that, Miss Weasley?" Professor Longbottom asked.

"Nothing, sorry Professor," Rose said, her cheeks turning bright red. Professor Longbottom shot her a look, however, that suggested that he knew what she was talking about. But how would he know about the Room of Requirement?

Rose turned to Scorpius again, who was staring at his Florius Carniverus and shaking his head slowly.

"But it's a perfect plan!" Rose whispered, her spirits dropping considerably. "All we need to do is need the Room to keep your father's spies out- Why do you keep shaking your head?"

Yet Scorpius continue to shake his head, right, left, right, left.

Frustrated, Rose squeezed the root of her Florius Carniverus, and hard. The bright orange plant exploded, sending puke-coloured urine flying across the room, landing on everyone. Professor Longbottom wiped the disgusting stuff off of his face and laughed. "And that, my friends is why we tickle, rather than squeeze," he said, grinning.

The rest of the class glared angrily at Rose, obviously not seeing the humor in it at all. Rose certainly didn't see what was funny; she was coated from head to toe in the stuff, and it smelled like a mix of rotten eggs, fish, compost, and french fries. Across the table, Albus turned green and began to gag. Suddenly Rose was covered, not only in Florius urine, but also in vomit. Now it was her turn to glare.

"Miss Weasley, would you please escort Mr Potter to the hospital wing and get him cleaned up before your next class?" Professor Longbottom requested.

"Sure." Anything to get away from Scorpius and the stench of plant urine. "Come on Al, let's go."

Albus stood up, wiping his mouth in disgust. "I think I got some of the plant pee in my mouth," he moaned as soon as they were out of the greenhouses.

"Great," Rose said sarcastically.

They walked in silence for a few minutes until- "I saw you talking to Scorpius."

Rose grunted.

"He didn't talk back," Al stated.

"It's none of your business, Albus Potter," Rose growled.

"Yes it is, you're my cousin," he said. "We're family, and your business is my business. I don't want you hanging around with the wrong people."

"Well, maybe you have the wrong idea about what the 'wrong people' are," Rose snapped angrily.

"He's a _Malfoy _Rose," Albus said, as if this cleared everything up.

"You are so PREJUDICED!" Rose screamed. And with that, she ran off, leaving Al standing, or wobbling, rather, stunned, pale white, and quite alone, in the middle of the grounds.

**A.N.- Eugh. Sorry for all the grossness in this chapter, but it was necessary. Rose had to be sufficiently fed up with life. You'll see why. Anyway, don't forget to review! And thank you so much to everyone who's following this story.**


	14. The Voice of Reason

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, and I do not own Harry Potter, no matter how much I want to.**

Chapter Fourteen

The Voice of Reason

Rose tore through the forest, not looking back, ignoring the creepy sounds emanating from deep within the tall trees. Twigs cracked loudly beneath her feet, making her vulnerable to the creatures of the Dark Forest. Branches whipped her arms and face, leaving scratches and red marks everywhere there was exposed skin.

Hot tears of anger poured down Rose's face. It was unfair; life was unfair. She had been dealt a bad hand, and there was nothing she could do about it. Why did Draco Malfoy and his evil wife have to be such jerks? Why couldn't they let their son live his own life? And why did they have to ruin her life as well? It was unfair, and she resented it with all of her heart. And Albus, Albus Meddling Potter, why couldn't he keep his fat head out of other peoples' business? What did it matter to him?

It wasn't long before Rose collapse in a puddle of her own tears, her legs aching, unable to run any further. She sobbed until there was nothing left, until her puffy red eyes could produce no more tears. _Why?_ She kept repeating the same word, over and over, in her head. _Why? Why, why, why?_

It was a very long time before the voice of reason in the back of Rose's head took over. _You have to chose; either go back to school or keep going, and run away. They'll start looking for you soon, so it's now or never._

Rose couldn't bear it. She could not bring herself to go back; she couldn't look Scorpius Malfoy in the eye ever again. Her heart had been broken, and there was nothing to do about it. Going back would bring her no joy. What was so great about Hogwarts, anyway? She couldn't see what made it so special to Scorpius. The only thing she could possibly do now was keep going. There was no other choice. It would be hard; she would never see her family again. But she could make it. She wasn't even sure she _wanted _to see her family. She especially did not want to see her father or her uncle.

Rose struggled to stand up. It was tough; she had been weakened by the run. She had never been great at endurance. Grabbing a low hanging branch, she managed to pull herself up. Taking a deep breath, she started walking slowly, deeper and deeper into the forest.

That was when she saw the first spider. It was tiny, but Rose had inherited her Father's fear of spiders, and alone in the huge forest, it just about scared her out of her wits. _Breathe, Rose, _she thought. _It's just a spider. It's just a spider. Breathe._

In and out, in and out. Rose had to remind herself to breathe every few minutes, as fear often deprived her of that natural rhythm. After a while of the same pattern, walking and remembering to breathe, reality began to sink in. If she didn't go back to Hogwarts, where on Earth was she supposed to go? She certainly couldn't stay in the Dark Forest forever.

The constant breaths were now coming in short spurts as Rose stopped and spun in a circle. She had to get out of this forest, and fast. She was terrified and alone, she had no food, no water, and no means of staying alive. "Help me, Mum," she whispered, a tear rolling down her cheek, the moisture surprising her slightly.

Which was the way out? She was sure she had come from that general direction, but that would lead her back to the school, and she didn't want to go back to Hogwarts. _Think, Rose, think! What would your mother say? _But Rose's mother's word were not what came to her. It was her father's voice, saying "_Follow the spiders? Why can't it ever be 'follow the butterflies'?" _

Rose was very confused. She was sure that she had never heard her father say this before. Where would that have come from? Where had she heard that before?

There was a rustling at her feet and Rose shrieked in horror as a spider the size of her head scuttled past her foot, nearly touching her. It was closely followed by at least ten other spiders of similar size, and at least a hundred tiny spiders. One of the small spiders crawled up Rose's leg and she began to hyperventilate.

"Oh my God, oh my God!" she cried, wringing her hands, trying to think what to do. _What would Mum say? What would Mum do? Think, Rose, think!_

Finally, Hermione's voice appeared in the back of Rose's head, reassuring and familiar. "_First of all, brush that spider off of your leg." _Rose did as she was told. _"Next, take out your wand. You're a witch, remember? Can't you think of a spell, any spell?"_

"No," Rose cried. "I can't think of anything! Help me, Mum! What spell should I use?!"

But her mother's voice was fading. _"Think of a spell... Any spell... A spell, Rose. Think of a spell..."_

"No, no!" Rose moaned. More spiders were coming. She wracked her brains, looking for the first spell that came to mind-

"Wingardium Leviosa!" she cried. The nearest spider rose ten feet in the air. "Oh no," she moaned. What were flying spiders going to help?

"_Follow the spiders..._" whispered Ron's voice in the back of Rose's head.

"What?" she whispered. "I'm supposed to- follow them?"

To Rose's utter horror, her feet began to move, one in front of the other. Right, left, right left. Following the spiders. Possibly the stupidest thing she had ever done. Taking advice from her father? To follow _spiders _no less? She was going senile. But she could not stop. Her feet kept moving, right, left, right, left, one in front of the other.

The trees were growing taller and closer together, the light was getting darker, and the underbrush was getting thicker. A thorn on a nearby rosebush ripped a hole in Rose's robe. Still, she kept walking, against her better judgement. Before she knew it she was standing in a hollow that was filled to bursting with millions and millions of spiders.

She had thought the spiders earlier were big; they were nothing, nothing compared to this. Some of these spiders were as big as Rose's house.

She was totally and completely surrounded, a wall of spiders on every side. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," she muttered to herself, her eyes widening. The spiders began to close in on her, and it was as if her brain was shutting down. "What do I do?" she said aloud, wringing her hands in distress again.

Wait- there was a spell her mother had taught her. It wouldn't hold them all back and not for long, but it could be enough. Rose pulled out her wand and screamed, "REDUCTO!"

The spiders on one side were blasted backwards, unable to move, an invisible wall blocking their path. Rose spun around quickly. "REDUCTO!" she screamed again. The rest of the spiders were blasted backwards also.

Momentary relief, although her problem was not yet solved. There was still the matter of escaping. The seconds ticked by and she began to panic again. There was no way out of this- any minute now the spiders would be able to move again and they would attack her and eat her for dinner.

Rose looked upward in despair, hoping for some kind of vine that she could climb up. Instead, she realized that there were no trees at all above her head. The sun was shining directly down on her. She had been unaware of the light. Usually, she would have been happy to see the bright yellow sun smiling down at her, but not now. It had ruined her plans, her last hope, her only means of escape. All she could do now was wait, and hope that it wouldn't be painful.

"I wish I could find some way to escape!" she cried out at the top of her lungs, even though she knew it was pointless to waist her breath now.

The first spider started to twitch and advance on her, and Rose was sure that she was doomed. Then she saw it. A dazzling creature, leaping down towards her from who knows where. It sparkled like nothing Rose had ever seen before. It was like a million diamonds embedded in the creature's skin. Other than the sparkling, it appeared human, but it did not act thus. It hurtled towards Rose at a blinding speed and grabbed her in one arm, throwing her over it's shoulder. She squeezed her eyes shut as it jumped, higher than Rose thought any creature in the world could possibly jump, way out of reach of the spiders and into a nearby tree. It set Rose gently down onto a large branch and was gone before she could get a closer look at it.

"Oh my God," she breathed.

Rose just sat there, stunned, for at least ten minutes before she decided that she needed to get out of the tree. She stood up slowly and carefully, her knuckles white as she gripped the branch above her head. Taking deep breaths and small steps, she slowly made her way to the edge of the branch. A branch from a nearby tree connected to it, and Rose continued on to this branch.

She continued like this for nearly an hour before she decided that she was far enough away from the spiders, and it was safe to climb down. Rose looked down nervously. She was very high up, at least fifty feet. She had never been very good at climbing trees. Hugo was the tree climber in the family. Luckily, there were lots of sturdy looking branches on the way down. In no time, Rose was on the ground, feeling shaken, but thankful that she was not spider meat.

What had that sparkling creature been? It had been so beautiful, so graceful, so perfect. Rose had never seen anything like it in her whole life. She wished it had stayed a little longer, so she could have at least said thank you for saving her life.

_Where to now? _Rose asked herself. _I have to get out of the Dark Forest, before some other freaky creature comes and eats me._ She had been right, taking her father's advice was not the smartest idea ever.

Rose sighed, knowing there was only one solution. She had to go back the way she came, and then think of a way out through the Hogwarts grounds. She turned in a circle, looking all around her, realizing that she had changed course when she had followed the spiders.

"Shit," she muttered, realizing that she was completely and utterly lost.

She closed her eyes, trying to remember a time that her mother had told her what to do if you're lost in a forest. But somehow, the subject had never come up. She spun another circle. She obviously wasn't going to go in that direction, she had just come from there, and that was where the spiders were.

"I'm just going to have to guess," Rose muttered to herself. She turned her back to the spider-direction and took a deep breath. "This way, I guess."

She began to walk purposefully forward, pushing the needles of pine trees out of her way. She stumbled on roots that had grown above the ground a few times, but each time she picked herself up, brushed the debris off of her robes and kept going.

The trees began to grow closer together again, and Rose knew she was going the wrong way. She didn't want to go towards the dark, she wanted to go to the light. She turned around again. There were only two options, now. She couldn't keep going the way she was going, because that was obviously deeper into the forest. She couldn't go the opposite, because that was where the spiders were. That left either that way or that way.

"Rock, paper, scissors," Rose muttered under her breath, before realizing- "Wait, that only works with two people. Stupid. Okay then, I'll go... this way." She pointed to her right. "Oh my God, I'm going crazy. I'm talking to myself," she said, horrified. She shook her head and headed in her chosen direction.

After a very, very long time of walking, tripping and more walking, the sky above Rose's head began to turn blood red. "Oh, no," she moaned. "The sun is setting."

Rose couldn't continue once the sun disappeared from the sky. She wouldn't be able to see, let alone tell which direction was the right one. She sat down on a fallen tree next to her and buried her face in her hands, letting the tears fall once more. She would just have to wait it out till morning now. As if she would ever be able to fall asleep in this place.

Soon the sun disappeared completely, and Rose was covered in a blanket of darkness. She looked up to the sky, her face drenched in tears, her eyes puffy and red. The full moon shone down at her, accompanied by the twinkling of a million stars. "I wish I could find my way out of here," she whispered. "Could you show me the way? Point me?"

"The stars cannot speak, little one," said a voice behind Rose. She jumped, staring up at the speaker in terror. "But they can be read, if one knows how."

Rose could barely make out the outline of a creature she had only ever read about in books. Half-man, half-horse, a centaur stood above her, bow in hand, a quiver of arrows slung across his hairy back. "Oh my God," Rose whispered for the hundredth time that day.

"My name is Jaiko," it said. "I am a centaur, if you have not already figured that much out."

"Yes, I figured," Rose muttered, still utterly terrified. "You scared me to death."

"We do not harm foals, young one," he said. "You mean no harm to me, and therefore I mean no harm to you. But I might be able to be of help."

"You can help me?" Rose asked excitedly.

"I can read the stars," he said simply, yet seriously.

"And... what do the stars say about me?" Rose asked.

"They tell me you are lost, alone, and afraid," Jaiko said without even glancing upwards.

"What else do they say?" Rose breathed.

"The sun, my dear," the centaur said. "It sets in the West, as the old saying goes. When it sets, the stars come out, along with their friend the moon. The planets become clearer, and we centaurs come out to read the future in the sky."

"And what are they telling you tonight?" Rose prompted.

"Do you see that bright star?" Jaiko asked, pointing to a particularly large and bright star in front of them. Rose nodded. "It is Saturn. It is a rare occurrence to see Saturn with the naked eye, and I have never in my twenty years seen it shining so brightly. It is a sign."

"A sign of what?"

"Revenge. Vengeance. It will come to pass. Someone has been plotting revenge for many years, and their opportunity will arise."

"And what does that have to do with me?" Rose asked, getting slightly annoyed.

"For your sake, I should hope that it has nothing to do with you," he said. "Unless you have been plotting revenge on someone for many years?"

"Not many years," Rose muttered. "Just for a month or so."

"What was that?"

"Nothing. What else do the stars say?"

"It is nearing February, and February is the month of love," Jaiko stated. "That star there, and that one over there, they are Cupido and Lazarine. Cupido is the match maker. He attempts to make love happen for people. Lazarine attempts to stop love, out of jealousy. She loved Cupido when they walked this Earth as humans, but he turned he down. Ever since then, she has been plotting against him. Perhaps it is _her _revenge that will come to pass. Let us hope that it is not so."

_I wonder which one of them is affecting me, _Rose thought sarcastically. _Lazarine, hands down._

"Do the stars tell you how to get out of the forest?" Rose asked. "I'm lost, as you so rightly pointed out yourself, and I need to know the way. Could you point me in the right direction?"

"Alas, no," Jaiko said, hanging his head sadly. "I do not know the way, and the stars do not tell me. I live in the center of the forest with a herd of centaurs, and we do not venture outside our own boundaries."

"Oh," Rose said, despair enveloping her again.

"I must go now, young one," Jaiko said. "Good luck."

"Wait!" Rose called desperately as the centaur turned to make his leave. "Don't you know anyone, any other centaur who knows the way out? Isn't there a centaur who's been on the grounds?"

"There is one," Jaiko said, his face clouding over. "But we do not speak of him. He was banished years and years ago when he accepted a teaching post at Hogwarts. We are not the servants of humans, and he gave up his home and his herd by deciding to become just that. Goodbye, my dear."

And Rose watched in despair as her last hope galloped away into the darkness.

**A.N.- House-sized spiders, centaurs, and mysterious sparkly creatures. Pretty much your typical day in the Forbidden Forest. Please keep reading guys! Your support has been great. And don't forget- review, review, review! =]**

**Beta-read by **

**MsRobcat**


	15. How's That For Rash?

**Disclaimer: I am not JKR, and I do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Fifteen

How's That For Rash?

Scorpius paced back and forth in front of his four-poster bed, encased in a cloud of worry. "It's my fault she's gone, I know it is," he said for the umpteenth time.

Humphrey Goldenburgh, Scorpius's fellow Hufflepuff and only friend since he had started ignoring Rose, rolled his eyes. "For the millionth time, Scorpius, it's not your fault!"

"Yes it is."

"If it's anyone's fault, it's her cousin's," Humphrey said reasonably. "She was with him when she ran away, wasn't she?"

"Yes, I overheard him telling his brother that they got into an argument and then she ran off into the Forbidden Forest," Scorpius said. He was in deep distress over this, agonizing ever since he had found out that Rose was gone.

"You mean you were eavesdropping," Humprey corrected, raising his heavy eyebrows slightly.

"Yeah, I guess I was," Scorpius said shamefacedly.

He paced in silence for another few minutes, before Humphrey suggested weakly that they head down to the Great Hall for dinner.

Scorpius shot him a look that clearly said, 'I can't eat right now, I'm in despair over the girl I love.'

"Okay then," Humphrey said. "You stay here. I'll go."

"No!" Scorpius burst out, stopping his pacing for a moment. "Don't leave me, Humphrey."

"Why not?" he asked, confused.

"I just don't want to be alone, that's all," muttered Scorpius. "You're the only thing that's preventing me from doing something rash."

"I guess you're going to have to do something rash, then, because I'm leaving," Humphrey stated, slipping off his bed and heading towards the dormitory door. "I'm starving. And you should get something to eat, too."

"I'm not hungry," Scorpius said.

"Fine," Humphrey said. "I guess you're going to be alone up here then."

Scorpius sat on his own bed, seething. It wasn't very long before he saw the truth in what he had said to his friend. Humphrey was the only thing that prevented him from doing something rash. But just now, being rash didn't seem like such a bad idea after all.

Scorpius stood up and ran after Humphrey. But instead of following his friend through the big double door into the Great Hall, he carried on up the stairs, all the way to the seventh floor. There, he resumed his pacing in front of an empty stretch of wall.

A big brass door appeared, and Scorpius opened it eagerly, expecting a large room filled with hiking gear, food supplies, something to carry water in, maybe a map, and other such riches. Instead, he found himself in a tiny cupboard inhabited by nothing but a small compass and an empty rucksack. Frustrated, he scooped up the next-to-useless items and headed back towards his dormitory.

He did not, however, enter the Hufflepuff common room. He paused at a painting of a fruit bowl. Throwing the compass into the rucksack, and the latter over his shoulder, he extended an arm and prodded the pear in the middle of the bowl of fruit. The pear giggled and then transformed into a tiny green doorknob. Scorpius opened it to reveal a room full of house elves, bustling around the kitchen, working hard to prepare that night's dinner.

Within seconds, five elves were at Scorpius's feet. "How may we help you, sir?" the smallest elf of them all asked.

"I need some food," Scorpius told them. "Get me whatever's good. And a big thing of water would be great, too. I need lots."

"Yes, sir, right away, sir," the elves chorused. They hurried away to fill him up a big jug of water and a huge plate of delicious, fresh food.

"Thanks, that's perfect," Scorpius said, tipping all of the food off of the tray and into his rucksack. He then placed the jug of water on top of everything else. It would probably squish his food. Well, it was too late now.

"Come again, sir!" the house elves cried, huddling around the entrance to the kitchens. "Enjoy your food, sir!"

Scorpius thanked them again before closing the hidden door on them.

He hurried to the nearest boys' toilets and set down his rucksack. It took a lot of hard work: pull, tug, wiggle, yank, and repeat. Finally pain seared through Scorpius's gums. Blood soaked his tongue. He held in his right hand a small white molar, the one with the tracking device in it. His father had implanted this is his tooth when he had found out the truth about Rose. If Scorpius had had the courage to pull it out before, maybe Rose would still be here. Maybe they would be meeting after dinner to go play Quidditch or to hang out in the Room of Requirement.

But probably not. His father would have realized what Scorpius had done and come to take him away from Hogwarts. It wouldn't have been worth it. But it was now. It most definitely was now. Let Draco Malfoy try to take him away from Hogwarts now, for it would be really hard if he was already gone.

Scorpius held the tiny tracking device up to his lips and whispered, "I hate you, Dad. Goodbye." And he chucked the tooth in the toilet and flushed it down without another thought. Thank God the thing didn't record his voice, only his whereabouts.

Now he was ready. All he need was a plan.

_I'm just going to wing it, _he thought to himself. _There's no time for planning. I've got to get out of here before Dad shows up, looking for me._

He was going to find Rose, and they would run away together, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop him.

How's that for rash, Humphrey?

**A.N.- Yeah, I know, this chapter's super short. It's only about 1000 words. But it said what it needed to say, and I didn't feel like I needed to elaborate, so you get a short chapter. The next chapter is about half-way done, so it'll probably be up tomorrow. Review, review, review! Please and thank you. :D**

**Beta: MsRobcat**


	16. A Sense of Direction

1**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling, as you can clearly tell, and I do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Sixteen

A Sense of Direction... Finally

_Six year old Rose Weasley squealed excitedly as there was a knock on the door. "Uncle Harry's here!" she cried._

_Tiny little Hugo toddled towards his older sister, bouncing happily. "Today good day!" he exclaimed. "Uncle Hawwy comin' and I go potty in big toiwet_!"

_Harry walked in with no further invitation and scooped Rose and Hugo up into a big hug. "How are my niece and nephew today?" he asked with a grin._

_"I go potty in big pewson's toiwet!" Hugo announced gleefully._

_"Wow, Hugo!" Harry said. "Good job, buddy!"_

_Hermione emerged from down the hall, soiled gloves on her hands and a disgusted expression on her face. "Not all of it landed in the toilet, though," she said grimly._

_This only made Harry laugh even harder. "I just got back from work," he said. "Thought I'd stop by before I went home. Where's Ronald?"_

_"Did you not see him at the office?" Hermione asked, confused._

_"Nope," Harry said. "Actually, that's most of the reason I'm here. Technically, if he doesn't show up for work without explaining his absence ahead of time, I'm supposed to rat him out to the Minister. But I honestly don't think Kingsley really cares what Ron's doing as long as when he's given an assignment he shuts up and does it. I am surprised, though, that he wasn't there. He's usually pretty good about it, when it's his day to work. I don't know how you two convinced Kingsley to let you do that, alternating work days so you can stay home and take care of the kids."_

_Hermione shrugged. "He likes us," she said. "Any way, we only have to do that until they go to Hogwarts."_

_"Which is, what, five years for Rose and seven for Hugo?" Harry said. "That's quite a long time, Hermione."_

_"We'll manage," she said stiffly._

_"Well, if Ron's not here, I guess I'll be going," Harry said, turning towards the door. "I wouldn't want to keep you from that lovely toilet for long, Hermione." He grinned widely, taunting her._

_"Wait!" Rose cried. "Can you stay a little bit longer? Could you tell me a story?"_

_"Sure, Rosie," Harry agreed, sitting down on the sofa and helping little Rose climb up onto his lap. Hugo cuddled up next to them. "What story do you want to hear?"_

_"Is it fun being an aura?" Rose asked, her brown eyes alight with curiosity._

_"An auror, you mean?" Harry asked with a laugh. "Sure, it's pretty fun. I like getting to boss your daddy around."_

_"Why you boff daddy?" Hugo asked._

_"Because I'm his boss, silly!" Harry explained, giving Hugo a playful poke in the tummy. "It's my job!"_

_"Can you tell us a new story?" Rose requested. "One that you've never told before? Please?"_

_"Pweeeeeeeeev!" Hugo added, putting on his best puppy dog face._

_"Oh, alright then," Harry replied. "Just let me think... Oh, there, I've got it. I told you the story of the Chamber of Secrets, right?"_

_The kids nodded._

_"Well, you know how everyone thought it was Hagrid, and he got taken away to Azkaban for a little while?" They nodded again. "Well, we were there the night the Minister came for him, and this wasn't Kingsley then, this was Cornelius Fudge. He wasn't quite as cool as Kingsley is. But anyway, your father and I were visiting Hagrid, and when they came to the door, we hid under my invisibility cloak, because we weren't technically supposed to be there. We were supposed to be confined to our dormitories. As they were escorting Hagrid out, Dumbledore gave a very illuminating speech that was obviously meant for us. He somehow knew that we were there."_

_"What did he say?" Rose asked, enraptured, although the story had barely begun._

_"He said, 'Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it,' and 'I will never truly have left the school while those who remain are still loyal to me.' Something along those lines. And then Hagrid, much less subtly, gave us some advice of his own. He said, 'If anyone wanted to find some things out, all they'd have to do would be follow the spiders,' or something like that._

_"So when they took Hagrid out, your father and I saw some spiders crawling out the window of the hut. We decided to follow them. Now, as you know, your father is terrified of spiders. It took quite a bit of convincing to make him come with me. One thing I remember very clearly is him saying, 'Why does it have to be follow the spiders? Why can't it be follow the butterflies?'" Harry chuckled._

_"And so we did. We followed the spiders for a while before we got to this... place. It was positively crawling with spiders. The leader of the pack's name was Aragog. He could talk, and he was bigger than my house. He told us lots of valuable stuff about the Chamber of Secrets, but then he told us that his family was going to eat us. They were coming in from all sides, and we were sure we were done for, and then it came. You know the story about the flying car that took us to Hogwarts in our second year. Well, after that, it kind of became savage. Wild. It took to the forest, and it lived there ever since. Anyway, the car came to our rescue. It charged through the spiders, and we climbed in and drove away. We were safe... But I don't think your father has ever been the same." Harry laughed again. "His fear for spiders only doubled."_

_"That was a good story," Rose said brightly. "Can you tell another?"_

_"Sorry, Rosie, but no," Harry said, shaking his head. "I have to get home to your aunt. She'll be wondering where I am."_

_"Okay, maybe next time," Rose said_, _hanging her head sadly. _

_"Definitely," Harry promised._

_"Bye bye!" Hugo said, giving his uncle a hug._

_"Bye, Hugster," Harry said, wrapping his arms around his four-year-old nephew with a laugh._

Rose awoke from the dream, expecting to see Martie at the edge of her bed, shaking her awake to face another day. But all she saw was green, stretched as far as the eye could see. Rose rubbed her back. It was very sore; she had evidently spent the night lying on the fallen tree beneath her.

It all came rushing back at that moment: Scorpius, his evil father, the Florius Carniverus pee in Herbology class, Al getting sick, yelling at Al, running away. And the events that followed only worsened the situation: following the spiders, almost being eaten, being saved by the mysterious sparkly creature, wandering every which way, lost, lost, completely lost. Giving up hope. And then meeting Jaiko, the centaur who could read the stars, but who did not know how to get out of the forest.

Lost.

The word resonated in Rose's brain for a long time, and her eyes began to tear up before she could think straight again. _I need to get out of here,_ she thought. Her stomach rumbled as if in agreement.

She was so hungry. She hadn't eaten since breakfast the day before, when she had received the letters from her father and her uncle. And the thirst was almost unbearable. Her lips were dry, her throat was parched, and she had no source of water. There was a water spell, she knew, but she did not know how to cast it. She didn't even know the incantation. She recalled, painfully, I might add, a time that Scorpius taught her a spell to get rid of water, but that was of no use here. And, of course, no spell could create food. It was one of the exceptions to Gamp's law of elemental transfiguration.

The question that was important now was, which way to go?

Rose thought back to her conversation with Jaiko. What had been the first thing he said about the stars? "The sun sets in the West, and then the stars come out, accompanied by their friend the moon," Rose whispered.

Of course! The sun sets in the West! Rose scanned the horizon. The brilliant orange sun was rising to her right, which meant that it would set to her left. So to her left was West, to her right was East, to her front was North, and behind her was South. But... which direction should she take to Hogwarts?

The North Tower was to the left of the castle, so that meant that she had to travel North to get to Hogwarts, right? Rose hoped dearly that it was so. Taking a deep breath, she began to head forward, keeping her fingers crossed that she was going the right way.

*

After walking for what seemed like hours on end, Rose finally remembered the dream. She finally knew where she had heard that stupid 'follow the spiders' thing. How could she not have remembered that particular story that her Uncle Harry had told? Especially in light of the fact that almost the exact same thing had happened to her yesterday.

But why had that particular quote stood out when she could not remember the entire story? That was the true mystery. No matter, she wasn't going to find the answer here.

All of a sudden Rose heard the tell-tale crunch of something walking towards her. Instinctively, she side-stepped, concealing herself behind a large oak tree.

"Hello?" said a small voice, one that Rose recognized.

Rose stepped out from behind the tree, staring at the person in front of her in a state of shock. "Scorpius?" she breathed, astounded. He nodded. "How- how did you find me?" Rose asked.

Scorpius held up what looked like an ordinary muggle compass. "I thought it was broken at first," he explained. "It didn't point North. But then I figured out that it isn't supposed to point North; it points you in the direction that you need to go. It's really cool."

"Why are you talking to me?" Rose asked, still unsure that she was not dreaming this up.

"You know those 'spies' we talked about?" Scorpius said with a laugh. "It wasn't really a _spy _technically. It was a tracker, actually. In my tooth. He could see where I was, and who I was with. I ripped it out so I could come find you."

"Well, why didn't you rip it out before?" Rose asked angrily. "That would have solved everything!"

Scorpius shook his head. "No," he said. "If he realized that I had taken it out, he would have come looking for me. He would have taken me home. But now he can't take me away from Hogwarts; I'm not even in Hogwarts! We can run away together, and they'll never find us. Never."

Rose smiled for the first time in a very, very long time. "That sounds just about perfect," she said.

Scorpius held out his right palm, in it, the compass. "This way," he said. "We're going to get out of here."

He looked Rose up and down. "You look like you could use some food, and water. Here." He tossed her the rucksack. "Have some of that while you walk."

Rose opened the pack gleefully, examining all the wonderful food within. She gulped down some water and then selected a couple juicy chicken legs to munch on while they walked.

Scorpius took her free hand, and smiled.

It was the first time either of them had been truly happy in over a month.

**A.N.- Yay! They're together again. :) I hope that makes you guys happy, because it certainly made me happy. Thank you for your support, please continue to read and REVIEW! The button's right down there.**

**Beta: MsRobcat**


	17. Forbidden Love

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not (sigh) own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Seventeen

Forbidden Love

Rose let out a small cheer of joy as she and Scorpius stepped out into the sunlight at the edge of the forest side by side. "Told you we'd make it," he said, giving her hand a squeeze.

Rose smiled. "I shouldn't have doubted you and your compass," she said with a giggle.

"You won't doubt me again," Scorpius said.

"Where to now?" Rose asked.

"I was hoping you knew the answer to that question," Scorpius said, his grey eyes uneasy.

"Shall we just... walk for a little while until we see somewhere to stop?" Rose suggested.

"Okay," Scorpius agreed. "Did you happen to bring any gold?"

"No," Rose laughed. "I didn't bring anything. I just dropped my book bag and ran."

"Oh," Scorpius said, his brow creasing. "I should have thought to bring some money, we might need it."

"We certainly will need it, after a time," Rose said, starting to panic again. "We haven't thought this through, Scorpius! We're not prepared! We'll starve after we finish off what's in there!"

"We'll find a way," Scorpius said, his jaw set determinedly. "We'll get a job if we have to, we'll do anything."

"Scorpius, we're eleven years old," Rose said.

"Not for long," Scorpius announced proudly. "My birthday's in two days."

"Oh, really!" Rose exclaimed. "I didn't know. Happy early birthday, I guess."

"Thanks," Scorpius said with a grin.

"I still think we should ration out the food, just in case," Rose said. "You know, like just eat a little bit every time, so it lasts longer. I don't want to run out any time soon."

"I know what rationing is, thank you very much," Scorpius said, pretending to be highly offended.

"So, what now?" Rose asked.

"Let's just walk for a while until we find a town, I guess," Scorpius said. "We need to find somewhere to stay..."

"I doubt we'll find somewhere to stay," Rose said. "How would we pay to stay there, any way? We don't have any money."

Scorpius pulled the compass out of his pocket. "We still have this, remember?" he said, waving it at Rose.

"Oh, right," Rose said, brightening considerably.

Scorpius lay the compass flat on his palm and it began to spin. Finally, it landed pointing slightly to the right of where the pair was facing.

"Okay then," Scorpius said. "Off we go."

"Off we go," Rose repeated.

They walked for quite a while in awkward silence, before Rose decided to finally break it. "So, if your dad was tracking you, why didn't he notice that we were together in Herbology?" she asked.

"He noticed," Scorpius said simply.

"And?"

"And, he got mad."

That was the end of that conversation.

"I've missed you a lot," Rose said, trying to break the silence once more.

"Me too," Scorpius said, with emotion this time, a smile growing on his face. "But we're together now, and that's all that matters, right?" He gave her a small reassuring squeeze.

"Right," Rose said, nodding happily. "So, does that compass tell you how long it's going to be before we get there?"

"No," Scorpius said, shrugging. "I'm guessing it might be a while, though."

"Yeah, probably," Rose said.

"So, tell me more about yourself," Scorpius said. "What was your life like before Hogwarts?"

Rose shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "The usual, I guess."

"Could you elaborate on that?" Scorpius asked, laughing. "I'm sure the usual for a Weasley is different than the usual for a Malfoy."

"I don't know," Rose repeated. "I saw my cousins almost every day, since our parents are so close. It's like we're one big family rather than two. And Teddy's always around, he's a big part of the family, even though we're technically not related. Not yet, any way, not until he marries Victoire, which is obviously going to end up happening..."

"Who's Teddy?" Scorpius asked. "And Victoire?"

"Teddy's my Uncle Harry godson," Rose explained. "His parents died in the war, so Uncle Harry pretty much raised him. And Victoire is one of my cousins. She's in the seventh year, in Ravenclaw. Teddy's a year older than her."

"Oh, okay. Carry on with your story, then."

"Well, we play Quidditch a lot," Rose continued. "We have massive family games, and tournaments and everything. Even the grownups get in on it, most of the time. Except for Mum, of course. She hates flying.

"The past year, Mum has taught me a lot of simple spells. She wanted me to be really ready for school, so I'd be top of the class, just like her. My dad had to rescue me from her study sessions quite a lot so I could join in on the Quidditch games, because of course he wants me to make the Quidditch team. I guess he knew I wouldn't try out this year, first years rarely do, but he expects me to try out next year for sure. I think I have a chance at making it, I'm not that bad a player really, not to brag or anything, but you know..."

Scorpius grinned. "You're a great Quidditch player," he assured her. "You're an amazing Chaser, and you're a really good Keeper, too."

"I'd definitely try out for Chaser, though," Rose said. "It's so much more fun than just sitting in front of the goal posts for the whole entire game."

"Oh, yes," Scorpius said sarcastically. "Because stopping high-speed flying balls from going through goal hoops one hundred feet off the ground is so uneventful and boring."

"I didn't say that," Rose said with a laugh. "All I said was that I preferred to play Chaser. And so do you, if I'm not mistaken."

"You're not," Scorpius said, nodding.

"So, what about you?" Rose asked. "What's a typical day in the life of a Malfoy?"

Scorpius shrugged, his mood obviously dropping. "Being told you're not good enough happens quite regularly," he said melancholically. "I'm forced to play Quidditch quite a lot, not that I don't enjoy it, but it's not quite as fun with my father there yelling at me the whole time. I have the best of everything, I have a house elf who hates my family's guts, I have parents who wish I was more of a typical Malfoy, and I have the worst grand-parents in the world. Oh, and my mother can get quite violent at times. And not to mention that fact that I have it drilled into me at least a hundred times a day that muggles and muggle-borns are filthy creatures, not to be spoken to or trusted, and that pure-blood wizards should rule the world."

"Oh," Rose said, unsure of what else to say.

"Yeah," he said. His expression turned pained. "Rose, do you think you can understand why I had to stay at Hogwarts? Do you understand why I couldn't talk to you or interact with you in any way, because I couldn't risk my father finding out and taking me back home? Do you have any idea, or do you think I'm just an arrogant self-centered jerk like my father?"

"Don't worry, Scorpius," Rose said, smiling reassuringly at her companion. "I understand completely."

"You do?" Scorpius asked, looking relieved. "Oh, thank goodness."

Rose laughed.

"We must be getting close," Scorpius said after ten or fifteen minutes of walking in silence. "My compass is starting to vibrate, like it did just before I found you."

"Look, I think that's a town up ahead!" Rose exclaimed excitedly.

"It is!" Scorpius confirmed. "Come on, let's get going!"

They broke into a run, eager to find a place to rest for a while.

Soon it seemed as if their wishes were granted. A large building held a brightly coloured sign, glowing above the heads of the bustling people in the town square.

_Room and board, free. All meals included. Must work for your keep. Limited space available. Current occupancy: 28. Current spaces available: 2._

"Hurry!" Scorpius cried. "We have to get those two places!"

They sprinted towards the building, and rang the door bell impatiently, out of breath and exhausted.

A tall, pale man with high cheek bones and frightening eyes greeted them. "May I help you?" he drawled lethargically.

"We'd like a room," Rose said quickly. "Are there still two places available?"

"Certainly," the man drawled. "Your names?"

"Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy," Rose said, without thinking.

The man suddenly brightened, as if he had come to a sudden realization. He pulled out a couple sheets of parchment and scribbled on them quickly. He then handed them each one of the sheets and a pen. "Fill this out, please," he said eagerly.

Rose did so, although she felt uneasy about the man's tone. He had obviously written out the form on the spot, which struck Rose as quite odd.

_Name: Rose Weasley_

_Parent's Names: Hermione and Ron Weasley_

_Age: 11_

_Closest Relative (Other than your parents): Harry and Ginny Potter (Aunt and Uncle)_

"Thank you, very much," the man said, his eyes gleaming as Rose and Scorpius handed back their forms."My name is Rudolphus Lestrange, and I will be your host for the duration of your stay. I will call upon you when your services are required. Follow me, and I will show you to your room."

Rose followed uncertainly. There was something about this Rudolphus Lestrange that made her unsure of him. He struck her as untrustworthy, somehow.

"I hope you do not mind rooming together," Mr Lestrange said, although it was obvious that he didn't care whether they minded or not.

"Not at all," Scorpius said politely.

"Here we are," Rudolphus said, gesturing to a door with the number 15 written on it, apparently in permanent marker. "I suggest you have an early night, you will most likely be up early in the morning to work."

Rose just noted the evil glint in Rudolphus's eye before he slammed the door in her face. A lock clicked on the outside, and then there was silence.

**A.N.- Okay, I know that Rose and Scorpius are only eleven, and that they are a bit young to be madly in love and running away together, but I don't care. Anyway......... Dundundundunnnn.****If you don't know why I'm dundundunduning, then you are not a true Harry Potter fan. If you do know, the suspense is on, so please keep reading! Thank you to those who are following this story, and hold on, because it's about to get really interesting. Or at least, I hope you think so. Don't forget to review, everone!**

**Beta: MsRobcat**


	18. R is For Revenge

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not own Harry Potter or his magical world.**

Chapter Eighteen

R is For Revenge

Scorpius snored softly, rolling over in his sleep, a hand on his chest and a smile pulling up the corners of his lips. Rose wondered what he was dreaming about. She hoped that it was her that had caused Scorpius to be so happy, even in his sleep.

Rose herself could not fall asleep. As soon as Rudolphus had shut the door on them the night before, Scorpius had crawled into the small single bed on the left side of the room, falling asleep before his head touched the pillow. Rose was left alone to her thoughts and fears. She had suspected that something weird was going on ever since Rudolphus had brightened at the sound of her last name. If he was a muggle, he surely didn't know any one by the name of Weasley, which drew Rose to her final conclusion; Rudolphus Lestrange was a wizard.

Rose had sat, curled up in the fetal position, on her tiny bed, thin yellow blanket draped across her knees, for hours, shivering from the cold. The heat in this building was obviously either turned off or turned way, way down. Her eyelids were heavy, but she refused to let them close. She felt wary; she was unsure if sleep was advisable, when they were so vulnerably in the hands of Rudolphus. Not that Rose would ever be a match for a full-grown man, but her instinct was to be prepared for a fight if it came down to such.

Running away had not been a great decision. Rose had definitely gone against her better judgment and not thought the whole thing through. It had seemed like the right thing at the time, and very romantic, too. But of course, it had backfired, just as every one of Rose's plans did when she did not put any serious thought into them. All Rose really wanted right now was to go home; to be kissed on the cheek by her mother and hugged awkwardly by her father and sent to her warm, cozy bed in her own room. And she would feel safe, as she always did when her parents were nearby. She would be far away from Rudolphus Lestrange and his stupid, freezing, rent-free motel. If only life were so simple.

Suddenly a loud horn blared, flooding the small room with sound and causing Rose to scrunch up her tired eyes and clap her hands over her ears. Scorpius arose with a start. "What's going on?" he demanded groggily.

"I dunno," Rose said. "Must be our wake up call."

Sure enough, the lock clicked again and the door swung open, to reveal Rudolphus, who was just as tall, just as pale, and just as creepy looking as he had been the day before. "I am ready for you now," he announced, as if Rose and Scorpius had been waiting excitedly all night for this very moment. It was true; Rose had been waiting all night. However, she had been waiting in dread, not in excitement. "Follow me, please."

Rose stood reluctantly and fell into step behind Rudolphus, Scorpius yawning at her side.

"You're going to be scrubbing the kitchen floor with a toothbrush today," Rudlolphus said, grinning evilly. He led them into a grimy room that must be the kitchen, since there was a fridge, an oven, a microwave and a sink dominating the tiny space. Rudolphus handed Rose and Scorpius each an old toothbrush. He set a bucket of soap and water on the floor. "Have fun," he whispered, before slipping out of the room and locking the door.

"Scorpius?" Rose whispered, hoping that Rudolphus would not be able to hear their conversation.

"Yeah?" Scorpius asked, his toothbrush already scrubbing the grimy floor hard.

"He locked us in," Rose said simply, unsure how to explain how she was feeling at the moment.

"He did?" Scorpius said, looking up, his toothbrush pausing for a second, a mixture of surprise and confusion written across his face.

"Yep," Rose said. "And last night, too."

"What do you think it means?" Scorpius asked, his pale forehead creasing in concern.

"I don't know, but something weird is going on," Rose replied quietly. "Don't you find he seems really suspicious? And that form he gave us last night... he wrote it on the spot, and I'm guessing he doesn't give a form to every guest he gets here. Did you notice that when he heard our names, he kind of brightened a little bit?"

"No, I didn't notice."

"And I don't think there are many," Rose looked around and lowered her voice even more, "_muggles _named Weasley or Malfoy."

"So are you saying that you think he's a wizard?" Scorpius guessed.

"That's exactly what I think," Rose said. "And if he is, I don't think he's a good one."

Scorpius stood up, throwing his toothbrush aside and walked over to the door. He felt the doorknob and then pulled out his wand and muttered something unintelligible under his breath. "There's no lock on this door," he confirmed, returning to Rose's side.

"So that means..." she began.

"Rudolphus is definitely a wizard," Scorpius finished, nodding.

All of a sudden there was a large crack and Rudolphus materialized in the middle of the room. Rose screamed and jumped backwards, knocking the bucket of soap and water all over Scorpius.

"So you've figured it out," Rudolphus sneered, circling slowly around the two children. "I knew you would eventually, you seem bright enough. And Hermione Granger's daughter, no wonder."

Rose scowled, inwardly reprimanding herself for not lying about her identity.

"I never thought I'd see the day when a Malfoy and a Weasley would be so willingly in each other's company," Rudolphus continued. "Well, I guess even the best of us are mistaken occasionally."

"Very quiet, aren't we?" Rudolphus said when neither Rose nor Scorpius opened their mouths to speak. "Perhaps this will loosen your tongues; I have written to each of your parents. They will be arriving very soon, I should hope."

"No!" Scorpius burst out, unable to remain silent any longer.

"My parents are coming?" Rose asked, unsure how she felt about this.

"Yes, very, very soon," Rudolphus said, his evil grin stretching wider than ever.

"And what are you planning to do to them?" Rose asked angrily, her fists clenched.

"We shall see," Rudolphus said mysteriously. "But I think that my time for revenge has finally come."

Rose had a sudden vision of the outline of a centaur, a quiver of arrows slung across his back and a bow in his hand. _"Revenge. Vengeance. It will come to pass. Someone has been plotting revenge for many years, and their opportunity will arise."_

She gasped. Jaiko's prediction; it was coming true.

"What are you talking about?" Scorpius asked, his voice shaking.

"I'm talking about that fact that little Miss Weasley's grandmother killed my wife almost twenty years ago," Rudolphus said, his triumph mixing with rage.

"Rose!" Hermione's panicked voice rang through the small apartment building.

"Mum?" Rose called, standing up suddenly. "Mum, I'm in here!"

Hermione, Ron, Harry and Ginny all burst into the tiny kitchen at the same time. "Rosie!" Hermione cried again, running to embrace her daughter.

Over her mother's shoulder, Rose could see her Uncle Harry tensing, glaring uneasily at Rudolphus. "What have you done to my niece?" he demanded.

"Nothing," sneered Rudolphus. "Yet."

"Why have you called us here?" Harry demanded angrily. "What do you want from my family?"

"Revenge," Rudolphus snarled. "I want to avenge my Bella."

"This is not the proper way to do it," Ginny said. She pulled out her wand and cast a shield charm over the small room. However well it may have worked on charms and spells, it did nothing to ease the rising tension in the musty kitchen.

Ron grabbed Rose and pulled her behind him, in a protected position, all the adults in between her and Rudolphus. Scorpius hurried to her side and whispered, "What's going on?"

Rose shook her head, wide-eyed and silent.

"Let's end this," Rudolphus growled. He drew his wand and brought it down with a slash, and the shield charm Ginny had produced moments ago vanished just like that. "CRUCI-"

"Rose, take your friend and GO!" Harry yelled over top of Rudolphus.

Rose, panicked, grabbed Scorpius's hand and pulled him towards the door. Scorpius, however, refused to move. He stood stock-still, rooted to the spot, staring at Rudolphus. The tall man had brought his wand down on Harry, who was writhing on the floor, his face contorted in pain. Blood trickled out of the side of his mouth; he had apparently bit his tongue, trying to stop himself from screaming. Rose screamed instead, terrified for her uncle.

This was all her fault, if only she hadn't run away, if only she hadn't been so stupid, if only she had thought this stupid plan _through. _True, she would still be at Hogwarts in a state of depression, and true, Scorpius would still be ignoring her, and nothing would have changed. But at least her family would be _safe. _She had put them and Scorpius in mortal danger. It was all her _fault._

Something solid smashed into Rose and she went flying towards the door. The wood of the door obviously wasn't very solid, and her head smashed through the frame, sending shooting pains through her whole body. The last thing she saw was Scorpius running to her side and grabbing her hand before she floated out of consciousness.

*

Rose opened her eyes to see that Scorpius's parents had arrived and joined the battle. On which side, however, she could not tell.

Jets of light were flying across the room like mad. Rose rolled over and took cover under a small wooden table. From there, she observed the fight.

Harry, Hermione and Rudolphus were dueling in the corner farthest from Rose, Harry attempting vainly to cast a shield charm over Ginny, who was dancing on the spot, dodging Rudolphus's curses. Scorpius's parents, Rose's parents, and a wizard Rose had never seen before were battling at the opposite side of the room. Scorpius was no where to be seen.

Rose rolled over as a jet of red light shot past her, and experienced a searing pain, starting in her head and, as if in a chain-reaction, flooding through her entire body. "Ow," she groaned.

All of a sudden, Scorpius was at her side, helping her up, half-carrying her into the deserted kitchen. "Are you all right?" he whispered.

"I'm fine," Rose said, struggling to stand up. "Come on, Scorpius, help me up, we have to go help them!"

"We'll only make it worse," Scorpius whispered, stroking Rose's hair soothingly. "They'll get hurt trying to protect you."

"I want to help," Rose said, tears of pain and frustration rolling down her face.

"You wouldn't be of any help to them," Scorpius said rationally. "Not in your condition."

"I'm fine!" Rose protested.

"Your head is split in two!" Scorpius exclaimed, gesturing at Rose's blood-matted head of hair.

"Fine," Rose said angrily, closing her eyes and letting her weak body go limp, trying to heal itself.

Scorpius lay down beside Rose and pressed her hand against his heart. "They're going to be okay," he whispered reassuringly. "They're strong fighters."

"But what about your parents?" Rose whispered, her eyes remaining closed. "Which side are they fighting on?"

"I don't know," Scorpius replied softly. "But I think they're... I'm pretty sure they're dueling your parents. Although that doesn't mean they're on Rudolphus's side, that just means that they're not on your parents' side."

"What other side is there?" Rose asked. "And who was that other wizard with them?"

"My Uncle Prometheus," Scorpius clarified. "He's my Mum's older brother."

"Oh," Rose said, grunting in pain as she attempted to sit up.

"Stay down," Scorpius said, putting a hand on her shoulder, looking concerned.

Rose propped herself up on her elbows, which wasn't too painful, and it was a lot easier if she wanted to see Scorpius's pale, pointed face. "So he'll be fighting on your parents' side then, I guess."

"Yeah."

"Scorpius, I can't stay here," Rose said, putting on her best 'damsel in distress' face. "I need to know what's happening, I need to help. It's all my fault, and..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back it up," Scorpius cut in, holding up a hand. "How is it all your fault?"

"If I hadn't run away, you wouldn't have come after me and we would never have found this place, and my family wouldn't be in danger right now..." Rose trailed off, distressed.

"It's not your fault," Scorpius assured her, shaking his head affirmatively.

There was a cry of pain from the other side of the door, and Rose struggled to a sitting position again. "We have to help them, Scorpius," she said, wincing as she attempted to pull herself to her feet. "I just can't stand it. I can't stay here any longer, I need to know what's going on, I need to know if they're alright!"

"They'll be fine," Scorpius said soothingly.

"How do you _know _that though?" Rose asked worriedly.

"Fine," Scorpius said dejectedly. "You win. I'll go out and help them."

"No, Scorpius!" Rose groaned. "Don't you see? That's exactly what I _don't _want. I don't want anybody that I love to get hurt, and you are one of those people, like it or not. I want to see for myself that they're okay, and aid them myself if necessary, not putting anyone buy myself in danger."

"Rose," Scorpius said, exasperated. "You are injured. How many times do I have to remind you? You are in no condition to fight anyone, let alone full grown, fully trained wizards."

"You're a wizard, Scorpius," Rose said desperately. "Can't you fix me."

Scorpius gave a dry chuckle. "I am an eleven year old wizard who has barely started school, Rose. They don't teach healing spells until sixth or seventh year, at least. And even if I did know any healing spells, I would be terrified to use them on you; I'd be scared that I'd just make it worse."

Rose squeezed her eyes shut, a tear of frustration escaping her cramped lids.

"Oh, come on, Rose, it's gonna be okay, I promise you," Scorpius muttered, rapping his arms around her, kissing the top of her head softly.

"I'm scared, Scorpius," Rose whispered between sobs.

"I know, baby," he said softly. "Don't worry, I'm here."

Rose wiped her eyes and sniffed loudly before saying, "Can we at least peek through the door to see what's going on?"

"Of course," Scorpius said, cursing himself for not thinking of this before Rose become so upset.

He helped Rose crawl over to the kitchen door and opened it a crack, peering out on the battle behind.

The first thing Rose noticed was that lots more people had arrived. Most of them she guessed were aurors, called in by her Uncle Harry. Jets of light, all the colours of the rainbow, were flying all over the room, people were ducking, jumping, dodging and blocking spells of every kind imaginable. There were a couple of bodies that Rose couldn't quite make out lying on the ground, but she hoped against hope that they were alright, and that they weren't any of her family members. Then, all of a sudden, several things happened simultaneously; Ron and Rudolphus both fell to the ground, Ginny and Hermione screamed, and an old, bearded auror shouted an incomprehensible spell over the tumult, binding Rudolphus in a strong cord.

"Daddy!" Rose screamed, panicked.

Several wizards glanced over at Rose, and the same auror that had bound Rudolphus lunged in front of Prometheus Greengrass, who had started towards the two kids, anger and hatred clouding his dark face. The old auror cast a full body-bind curse on Prometheus, causing him to fall into Asteria, knocking her over as well. The bearded wizard bound them to each other with a swish of his wand.

"It's okay Rose, it's okay," Scorpius whispered, although his voice was shaking as well. "It's all gonna be okay..."

But Scorpius's voice was starting to fade, to become more and more distant. Rose swayed on the spot, and the last thing she remembered was the old, bearded auror running towards her before she fainted in Scorpius's arms.

**A.N.- Okay, so I'm happy with the length of this chapter, it's about 3000 words. I'm not the best at writing fight scenes, so I did my best, and I hope it's up to your standards as readers. I mean, it's obviously not as good as JKR's battles, but seriously, is anyone up to her caliber of writing? I had fun writing this chapter, even though it was tough at times. The fic's almost over (sad face) so hang in there! Keep reading, and review, review, REVIEW! :D**

**Beta: MsRobcat**


	19. Bitter Sweet

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not own the fabulous world of Harry James Potter and company.**

Chapter Nineteen

Bitter Sweet

Scorpius set Rose gingerly on to the ground, not wanting to cause her any more pain than was necessary. She had been through so much already today, and he wished that there was something he could do to just erase it all and make everything okay again. If only wizards could undo the past, life would be so much easier.

"Are you alright, sonny?" Scorpius had not heard the speaker approach; somehow, this gruff voice didn't seem to match up with such a silent demeanor.

Scorpius nodded, eyeing the old man. He had to be at least a hundred years old, by the looks of that grey-streaked white beard. "Who are you?" he asked suspiciously.

"Elijah Stone, auror," the old man said, sticking out his hand to shake. Scorpius noted that Elijah had surreptitiously closed the kitchen door behind him, blocking off the battle scene.

"Oh," Scorpius said, reluctantly taking the old auror's gnarled hand and shaking it.

"And you must be Scorpius Malfoy?"

"Yes," Scorpius confirmed, uncomfortable. He wondered how Elijah knew this.

"I know your father, boy," he said, as if reading Scorpius's thoughts. "He's not a great man, I'm sorry to say. We're going to have to take him and the others in to the Ministry."

"What's going to happen to them?" Scorpius asked, panicked. As much as he hated his parents, he didn't really want them to be sent to Azkaban or anything horrible like that.

"I don't know," the auror said sadly. "There's a chance they could be taken to Azkaban, but if so, it would only be for a very short period of time. Their crime was not terribly huge, but we don't have any proof whether or not they used any Unforgivable Curses. Either way, there's a very good chance that the Ministry will not permit you to live with them anymore."

Scorpius was completely at loss of words. He had no idea what he sentiments at the moment were, exactly.

"Is there anything you'd like to talk about, sonny?" Elijah asked, looking concerned.

Scorpius opened his mouth to say that he was unsure what he wanted to talk about, if he did want to talk at all, but no sound came out. He just sat there, stunned, staring at Elijah.

"Are you sure?" Elijah said.

"I- No," Scorpius stuttered. He took a deep breath, and all of a sudden he found himself spilling his guts to a total stranger about everything that had happened in the past year. He talked about the romantic beginning, the awful Christmas holidays, the track device, Rose running away, following her, and ending up at this motel and causing this stupid battle.

Elijah's forehead creased in concern, thinking hard. "It sounds as if your parents have been mistreating you," he finally said. "Have there been any other incidents?"

Scorpius hesitated. "Not- not really," he lied. Elijah glared sternly at him. "Well, yeah, I guess."

"Do you want to tell me about them?" Elijah asked kindly.

"No," Scorpius said firmly.

"Do you like living with your parents?" Elijah asked. "Have you ever thought that you'd like to get away from them and never go back? Answer me honestly, please, this is very important."

"Yes," Scorpius whispered. "I have thought that before. I've told Rose plenty of times that I hate my parents. But I'm not sure if, given the actual choice, I would ever really be able to do it."

"Would you be able to do it if the choice was taken away from you?"

"Seriously?" Scorpius asked. "I'm not going to be allowed to live with my parents?"

"I don't know, son," Elijah said tiredly. "That's up to the Magical Relations department. I'm an auror, and therefore your custody is not my decision. I'm just preparing you for the worst."

"Oh," Scorpius said, looking down at his hands. He still didn't know how he felt about this, but seeing as he wasn't jumping around excitedly, it definitely could not be a good thing.

"Come on, boy, we've got to go," Elijah announced, standing up suddenly.

"Go where?" Scorpius asked, startled.

"I have to take you back to Hogwarts," he stated. "I'll take you to the Hospital Wing and your families will meet you there, along with a few Ministry workers, I assume."

Scorpius just nodded slowly.

"Take hold of my arm," Elijah instructed him. "Tighter than that, son, I'm not made of china. There, that's perfect." He bent down and grabbed hold of Rose's arm, the rest of her body still lying unconscious on the ground. Once he was sure of his grip on the two children, he spun into the emptiness, bracing for the discomfort of apparition.

Scorpius gagged, unable to breathe. His lungs were closing, contracting unnaturally. The air around him was closing in, crushing him. He felt as if this was it, this was the end. He would die here, trapped in this never ending black hole without oxygen...

And then it was over. Scorpius drew in a huge breath, absorbing as much air as possible. He let his lungs refill themselves, and return to their natural breathing pattern.

"Uncomfortable, isn't it, son?" Elijah chuckled.

"You could say that," Scorpius spluttered. Apparition was definitely not his favourite way to travel. He looked around; they were standing in the middle of nowhere. "Where are we?" he asked, confused.

"You can't apparate into Hogwarts," the auror reminded him. "We're about a five minute walk away from the front gate. I've sent a message to the Headmistress, she's expecting you."

Sure enough, Professor McGonagall was waiting at the front gate, her mouth thin and her face stern. When she saw Rose, however, her expression changed to one of shock and horror. "What on Earth..?" she began. "What has happened?"

"I told you, Professor," Elijah sighed, sounding exhausted. "They ran away, and managed to find a motel owned by one Rudolphus Lestrange. Their parents somehow found out that they were in trouble and they came to help. Mr Potter called in a group of aurors after a while, and there was a bit of a fight. They got caught in the middle of it." He jerked his head towards Scorpius and Rose's unconscious form.

McGonagall gasped. "But surely she's not... That is to say... She's alive, is she not, Stone?"

"Yes, she's alive," Elijah confirmed. "But she's badly injured, I was told her head went through a door. Let's get her to the Hospital Wing, shall we?"

"Of course." McGonagall's face had a firm look of determination as she hoisted Rose's legs in unison with Elijah. Scorpius followed silently, dragging his feet, as the two adults walked swiftly and purposefully towards the castle.

"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Madam Pomfrey at the sight of Rose. "Whatever happened?"

Elijah explained again in hushed tones about the battle at Rudolphus's motel as Professor McGonagall told Scorpius sternly to lie down and let Madam Pomfrey take a look at him before he returned to his dorm. He went without argument, wanting desperately to lie down on one of the hospital beds and close his eyes and just forget everything. He did so, or at least he lay down and closed his eyes. Forgetting, however, was impossible.

After twenty long, painful minutes for Scorpius, Madam Pomfrey finally left Rose's bedside and bustled over to check up on Scorpius. "Did any particular damage get done to you that you might want to inform me of?" Madam Pomfrey asked, all business.

_Physical damage, or mental damage? _Scorpius thought.

"Well?"

"No, ma'am," Scorpius whispered.

The matron examined him from head to toe, tutting the whole time.

"What?" Scorpius demanded, getting quite fed up with this.

"You are obviously in post-traumatic shock," Madam Pomfrey said disapprovingly. "You will have to sleep here tonight, so I can make sure that you are getting a sufficient amount of rest. I'm going to give you a anti-shock and anti-depressant potions, as well as a very strong sleeping potion. You need a good night's rest with no interruptions. And that includes _dreams_."

She handed Scorpius an entirely unappetising looking goblet of potions. It had a nasty greenish-yellow colour, and it reeked of old, dirty socks and unicorn turds. Scorpius wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"I don't care how rotten it smells, just drink up, already," Madam Pomfrey snapped. She was clearly very serious about her job.

Scorpius closed his eyes and threw the stinky liquid down his throat. It tasted even worse than it looked; it reminded Scorpius of the time his mother had attempted to make cookies and has ended up using stale flour and mud as ingredients. The cookies has turned out burnt black, and had tasted like charred mud and puke. The potion also had a compost-y taste to it.

It worked, however, and before Scorpius even had time to set down his goblet, he was out like a light.

*

"I don't care what you say, or who you are, he's my son, and I decide where he lives!"

Scorpius woke to hear arguing voices, rising above the appropriate volume for a civilized conversation, let alone a hospital. He kept his eyes shut, pretending to sleep on, wanting to listen in, as he was sure that as soon as they realized he was awake, they would take their argument elsewhere, away from his prying ears.

"It is unacceptable for parents to treat their children in such a way," a man slightly calmer tone replied. "I don't care if you think that you get to decide how his life is run, you cannot deprive him of friendship because of the family this friend belongs to. And you were involved in a duel, just yesterday, during which you both fought against the Ministry's aurors and the parents of the friend we were speaking of."

"I- This is unacceptable!" screamed the voice of a woman Scorpius knew all too well. "We were just doing what we thought was right for our boy!"

"How on Earth is dueling a squad of fully trained aurors in your boy's best interests?" the man asked, exasperated. "If you can answer _that _satisfactorily, ma'am, we will grant you full custody of the boy."

"We- we thought that they had imprisoned him! We thought he was their captive!"

"What would motivate the Ministry of Magic to imprison an eleven year old boy?"

_Twelve! _thought Scorpius defensively. _Today's my birthday!_

It suddenly dawned on him; he was twelve years old today! It was his birthday! But what was his wonderful birthday surprise? He wasn't allowed to live with his parents anymore. Great birthday present.

"I don't know!" Asteria Malfoy shrieked. "Oh, I just don't know! I give up! There's nothing more we can do. I guess we just go home, then, Draco."

"Not so fast," the Ministry worker said quickly. "You're going to be the ones who break the news to your boy. It won't be easy, which is why you've got to be the ones to do it. It will be the beginning of your punishment. Then you'll have to accompany me to the Ministry, from which a couple of aurors will accompany you to Azkaban to await your hearing."

A tear trickled through Scorpius's closed lid. It was actually happening; his parents were going to Azkaban, and he was going to live who knows where. He had never thought that something this awful would happen to him. Really bad things were supposed to happen to other people, but not to him, never to him.

He grabbed the goblet that was sitting on his bedside table and took a huge swig; he wanted to go to sleep forever, to never wake up, to forget the awful things that had happened in the past few days, and to postpone the horrible moment when his parents would tell him that he couldn't live with them anymore until tomorrow. His fate could wait; he did not want it decided just yet.

**A.N.- Unicorn turds was not my choice of words, it was requested by Cydney. So Merry early Christmas, Cyd, I hope you are happy. :) Anyway, I wanted this chapter to be a bit longer, but I also wanted to put it up ASAP, so this is it. Only a few more chapter left guys! Stick with me! Don't forget to REVIEW!!! :D**

**Poor Scorpius, he's such a good kid, he doesn't deserve such an awful family. :'(**

**Beta: MsRobcat**


	20. The Road Home

**Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling and I do not own Harry Potter.**

Chapter Twenty

The Road Home

Two weeks later, everything was back to normal, or, rather, as normal as it ever could be. Rose's head was healed, and everyone involved in the battle was completely healthy. Scorpius's parents' hearing had been the other day, and it had been decided that although they would not have to spend any more time in Azkaban, Scorpius still wasn't allowed to live with them. His custody was still undecided, but they had until the summer before they had to figure this problem out for sure.

Life was pretty rough for Scorpius, as his future was so muddled and unclear at the moment. It was just that much easier because he knew that Rose would be with him every step of the way, supporting him through thick and through thin.

There would be plenty of tough times ahead, but both Rose and Scorpius were each sure of one thing; unwavering loyalty from the other.

Mariah had screamed, earning her a very dirty look from the matron, Madam Pomfrey. Martie had sported a look of complete and utter horror, shock plain on her pale, freckled face. Rose had sighed and begun to explain before the inevitable "What happened?" could follow.

Her two best friends had been a wonderful audience; they had remained quiet as much as possible, gasping at the appropriate spots and encouraging her when she had faltered, struggling to hold back tears. When she finished, Mariah had looked as if she wanted to ask more questions, but Martie had given her a look that had clearly said, _she's-been-through-a-lot-don't-push-her_. This had shut Mariah up effectively.

For the first couple of days after the incident, Rose's relationship with Mariah and Martie had been really strained. She had felt as if she was only partly there, and people kept looking at her with a variety of different expressions, making her feel as if she was some kind of ghost or abnormality. She had detested being ogled at like a zoo animal.

The worst had been Albus; she had been unable to talk to him for quite a while, unsure of what to say. Many times she had attempted to work up the courage and then changed her mind halfway there. She had not known how he would react- would he feel guilty, as if it was his fault Rose had run away? Or would he be angry at her for what she had done, endangering the lives of their parents?

Finally, she hadn't been able to put it off any longer. If there was going to be a confrontation, or what ever it would be, Rose had known that it had to happen then and there, before things built up too much and blew up in her face.

Albus had looked sullen; Rose had been wary, approaching him slowly, cowardly putting off the moment as much as possible. "What do you want?" Albus had snapped.

Rose had faltered slightly, unsure how to proceed. "I- I wanted to apologize," she had said. "For everything. I'm sorry if you felt like I was ignoring you because of Scorpius, and I'm sorry for blowing up at you before I ran away."

"Oh," Albus had said simply.

Rose had waited, expecting her cousin to apologize in turn for being such a jerk and trash-talking Scorpius. However, Albus had remained silent. Rose had glared at him angrily, unable to fathom how his mind worked.

Flinching at Rose's hard look, Albus had sighed. "I'm sorry for being such an arrogant jerk," Albus choked out with obvious difficulty. "I... Scorpius isn't such a bad guy. He came and talked to me and told me what happened. I suppose he's kinda nice... for a Malfoy."

"_Thank_ you," Rose said, glad that her and Al had finally cleared up this misunderstanding.

After that, everything between Albus and Rose had gone back to normal.

James had won another Quidditch match while Rose had been away, successfully putting Gryffindor into the finals for the Quidditch Cup. He had been training so hard, he hadn't had time to visit his cousin to hear her recollection of exactly what had happened during the time she had been gone.

Rose, finally out of the Hospital Wing, had dutifully sat through a long Gryffindor practice one gloomy Saturday morning, waiting to have a long overdue conversation with her oldest cousin. When Robyn Cullen, Gryffindor's Quidditch captain, had finally signaled her teammates to return to the dressing rooms, Rose was cold, wet and very hungry. Still, she had waited another ten minutes outside of the dressing rooms while James sat inside, listening to Robyn rant on about how they would never beat Slytherin if they played like they had that day in the finals.

James had looked surprised to see Rose, but he had not said anything. He had just walked silently at her side, allowing her to explain the events of the past few days. Rose had skated over the parts about Uncle Harry being hurt, not wanting to worry James. He had accepted her story easily, and Rose had left him outside of the boys washrooms where he had said he was planning to take a nice long shower.

Presently, Rose sat at the Gryffindor table eating her bacon and eggs in silence. Her mind was on the Hufflepuff table, where Scorpius would be enjoying his favourite breakfast: corn flakes and strawberries in chocolate milk, with a large glass of pumpkin juice on the side.

If only Rose and Scorpius were in the same house, they would be able to be together so much more often. Rose gazed at the back of Scorpius's head longingly, wishing they could at least have meals together. However, it was required that Hogwarts students ate at their own house tables at all times. Rose watched as a small tawny owl swooped down in front of Scorpius. It landed in his cereal, splashing chocolate milk all over his robes. He tore the letter open and read it slowly, before turning to stare into Rose's curious eyes.

She was distracted from Scorpius when her own owl landed in front of her, holding out his skinny leg and clucking impatiently. Rose took the letter from Fudge and fed him some bacon before opening it. When she did, she gasped aloud and spilled pumpkin juice on a very grumpy Albus, who claimed to have been up late last night finishing his homework.

"What?!" Mariah demanded, trying to snatch the letter from Rose.

Rose resisted, not wanting to share the news quite yet. "I'll tell you late, I promise," she said, putting her right hand on her heart solemnly.

Martie, always so quiet and acceptant of everything, nodded calmly. Mariah crossed her arms, assuming a look quite similar to Al's.

As soon as the final bell rang that day, Mariah pulled Rose aside, demanding to know what the letter had been about. "I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" Rose said. She loved Mariah, but sometimes she could be really pushy. "Come for a walk with me," she suggested.

Mariah chattered about their classes all the way outside. Rose got a couple of words in, but Mariah did most of the talking, as usual. And Martie, of course, followed along silent, almost invisible. Sometimes Rose honestly forgot that she was there. She had to wonder how a girl as talkative as Mariah and a girl as quiet as Martie were best friends. She didn't really care though, she was just glad that she had two great friends. And not to mention the best boyfriend in the whole world...

Rose grinned, remembering her awesome news.

"Okay, you _have _to tell me now, I've been waiting _all _day for this!" Mariah exclaimed, sitting under her favourite tree by the lake.

"Fine," Rose said, blushing.

"Omigosh! It has to do with Scorpius, doesn't it?" Mariah prompted excitedly.

"Yeah, it does," Rose admitted. "Do you want me to tell you?"

"Yes," Martie said.

"DUH!" Mariah corrected her, rolling her eyes.

"Okay, so did I tell you how Scorpius isn't allowed to live with his parents anymore, because of what they did?" Martie and Mariah nodded, one patient, the other eager. "Well, he found out who his guardians are going to be."

"Who?!" Mariah asked excitedly.

"My uncle Charlie! My mum suggested it to my dad, who suggested it to Uncle Charlie, because he doesn't have any children or a wife, but he's always wanted a kid. They arranged everything, and Scorpius was asked if that would be okay, and he said yes!"

"That's so awesome, Rose!" Martie said.

"Why doesn't he just live with you?" Mariah asked.

Rose shrugged. "It would be kinda weird to actually live together. Especially if, you know, we break up someday. I hope that never happens, but you never know."

"Rose!" someone called from across the grounds. It was Scorpius, and he was waving excitedly at Rose.

"Ooo, the boyfriend awaits," Mariah teased.

"You'd better get over there," Martie said with a laugh.

"I'll catch up with you guys later, okay?" Rose said, hurrying away from her best friends.

"Hey," Scorpius said, casually slipping his arm around Rose's shoulder. "You got the news, right?"

"Yes," she replied, laughing of pure joy.

"Feel like taking a long walk in the lovely Spring sunshine?" Scorpius suggested, offering Rose his hand.

"That would be delightful," she said, trying to suppress a giggle.

The silence that enveloped them as they walked was not awkward, the moment was right in every way. There was just no need for words, for each knew what the other was thinking without conversation. This was how love should be: not secretive, not forbidden, not causing tears and heartbreak at every turn. Young love should be like a nice long walk in the spring, not too hot, not too cold, the sun sparkling overhead, feeling absolutely and completely perfect.

The End

**A.N.- I know it's short, but this is how I wanted it. There was nothing else to say. Any way, this is the end, guys! We have finally reached the finish! I'm quite happy with it, so I hope you are too. I'll miss writing about Rose and Scorpius though. There might be another Next Generation fic coming, but it will probably be a while. I'm quite busy, but I'll do my best, so keep an eye out! Please review guys, even if you've already given your opinion on other chapters. I need to know how you felt about the end! The button's right down there, so review, review, REVIEW! It makes my day. :)**

**Beta: MsRobcat**

**3**


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